#but since rachel is the most famous person from her town she finds rachel and asks her if she knew her mom

[dykrophone]

who's gonna take one for the team and write the beth pov angsty estranged faberry future reunion fic the world desperately needs

[mrbottomhat69]

Specific and niche theories about the Are You Afraid of the Dark? reboot #3: smaller theories and observations

This is specifically for the little things I noticed and inconsequential one-to-two-season-specific theories.

(Occasionally edited to add new observations/theories)

Season 1: Carnival of Doom

Theory: Rachel has her own powers and never realized because it wasn't as obvious

Okay so I don't have that much evidence since it's kind of a fringe theory, but I think Rachel being the one chosen to remember gave her the power of persuasion, ultimately being the reverse of Mr. Tophat's power to manipulate people's memories. Most of this is based on episode 3, since she convinced the rest of the midnight society to help rescue Gavin by giving them her drawings and convinced a cop to drive her and her friends over state lines with a little heartfelt speech. And this was all before we learned about Rachel being the "chosen one".

. Rachel's dad is just... never mentioned at all and we just never know what happened to him despite him being present in Rachel's story/flashback

. If Rachel didn't have Gavin's pocketknife in episode 3, she would be dead. Also Mr. Tophat was perfectly okay with murdering a child and passing it off as being all part of the show, only deciding to try to talk his way out of defeat after his opponent escapes almost getting chainsawed in half. Also also the amount of times Rachel's almost died in this season is astounding.

. Mr. Tophat not showing up on video implied him not having a soul before it was mentioned in the final episode, since it's a common pop culture thing for beings without souls (vampires, for example) to not be able to show up on camera due to early cameras relying on mirrors

. There isn't a carousel in the carnival of doom (despite it being prevalent in commercials for the season and the opening itself) because of the 1944 carousel crash mentioned during Mr. Tophat's backstory

. The song that plays in episode 1 when Rachel's having a conversation with her mom on the way to school, Untold Stories, is an original song for the show written and performed by the band Chasing Da Vinci. The band is friends with Jeremy Ray Taylor, Graham's actor, and were contestants on the show America's Most Musical Families which was airing on Nickelodeon during the same timeframe. Check them out, their music is great.

. The town name of Argento might be more than just a reference, as director Dario Argento's most famous movie, Suspiria (1977), became iconic for its use of bright and dark colors to make a dream-like atmosphere, something that is used to its advantage throughout Carnival of Doom's three episodes

Can you tell this is my favorite season of the reboot?

Season 2: Curse of the Shadows

Two theories in one: Sardo is involved with some kind of family legacy to guard the book of shadows and the book of shadows from Ghost Island is only about half of the one from Curse of the Shadows

Ok so

From my moderate level of knowledge on witchcraft, a book of shadows is oftentimes referred to as a witch's diary because the person the book belonged to could write about their life and create new spells instead of just compiling information in a grimoire. I bring this up because by that logic, the book had to have been written by somebody who knew how to create spells that could be so unintentionally destructive. Maybe it was the witch from season 3, but I'll get to that in a bit. The main point is Sardo probably had the book of shadows in his family for generations if even his grandfather (Sardo from the original 90s series, which I think is a cool detail) warned him of how dangerous it truly was. So why keep a very real and very dangerous book hidden in a shop full of either unknown or fake magic run by a con artist? Because unless you knew where the book was, it would be the last place you would expect to find it. No one would suspect the fake magician is hiding real, dangerous magic.

The part about the Ghost Island book of shadows being a precursor to the Curse of the Shadows one is kind of a stretch, but one with evidence. Both contain rhyming spells that have some kind of bad outcome that only seems to benefit whatever creature or scenario spawned from it. The book of shadows in Ghost Island is this generally thin leather book, but considering this was the 1600s more stuff could have been collected and added so it becomes the ornate absolute unit of a book of shadows we see in Curse of the Shadows. Twice the spells, twice the danger.

. The lights on the sign for Sardo's magic shop suddenly flickering off in the opening foreshadows his (temporary) death in episode 5, since the shadowman basically drained the life from him and subsequently "causing his lights to go out". Also they killed him. They fucking killed him! They massacred my boy and fixed it with time travel! I still weep every time I rewatch that scene!

. Luke's name comes from the latin word for light, so it makes sense he's the last one standing and the one to free everyone from the darkhouse

. The t-shirt Seth wears in episodes 5 and 6 depicts himself in the magician tarot card. This isn't important or insightful, I just thought it was cute

. It's my personal theory that the reason Sardo remembers everything before the time reset is because his spirit was following the midnight society the whole time to make sure they didn't fuck up and die. Also his last words, "always say goodbye, kids" could imply he expected the midnight society to just escape and contact his spirit instead of them sacrificing themselves so the others could escape, eventually only leaving Luke behind.

. The whole "I thought women have bobby pins on them all the time" joke from episode 1 coming back to actually help them in episode 6 is clever, but it also implies that Zoe slept with that bobby pin in her hair before she disappeared. As someone who has done that before, it hurts

. Every time someone leaves the darkhouse, they end up next to June Murphy's grave

Season 3: Ghost Island

Theory: Max knew about the midnight society's storytelling ritual when he first met Kayla and the gang before they formally introduced themselves as the midnight society either because other midnight societies have visited the island before and just didn't bother with room 13 or Ricky and Max were part of their own midnight society

Like I know this is a stretch, but there's no way that Max just met a group of people on the beach and got the details of how they tell scary stories down to even throwing a handful of cocoa dust into the fire (which is an actual behind-the-scenes detail for both the original show and the remake) right unless he either saw it or did it before.

. In episode 2 when Kayla and Max are exploring the secret floor and Kayla mentions that they should split up to look for the camera faster, Max briefly looks at his hands and does the "whichever hand makes the L shape is left" trick implying he probably frequently confuses left and right

. The few flashbacks we get of older Kayla and Bella together implies that Bella died from some kind of medical reason, since the last/most recent two are implied to be in a hospital room

. It's All Coming Back To Me by Celine Dion is supposed to be the theme not just for Max, but for all the other ghosts and Lucia as well. The lyrics, despite being a love song, talk about longing for something to come back and how lonely and desolate the world was in the singer's point-of-view. By the time room 13's curse is broken, everything really does all come back to them

. In the flashback at the beginning of episode 4, Summer mentions Luke McCoy as one of the people she has a crush on only to be proven wrong by the game her, Kayla, and Bella are playing. This could be a different Luke McCoy than the one from Curse of the Shadows. If it's the same, then it implies that Derby (where Kayla mentions her and the rest of the midnight society are from) and Shadow Bay (where Curse of the Shadows takes place) are close to each other

. The previous point lead me to headcanon that Ghost Island is in the Florida Keys

. Kayla was the first person to see/notice Max in episode one, subsequently foreshadowing that he's a ghost

. Captain Cutter's alias, Stanley Crane, actually contains a few horror references. "Stanley" could be a reference to the Stanley Hotel in Colorado, which is said to be haunted and is apparently the inspiration for Stephen King's famous horror novel The Shining. "Crane", on the other hand, could be a reference to Marion Crane from Psycho (1960), who was assumed to be the movie's protagonist until she's suddenly killed in the iconic and infamous shower scene early on in the movie. This could parallel Cutter's duplicitousness, letting the audience assume he's just a hotel manager doing his job until he reveals his true colors.

. The reveal that Captain Cutter's grave was empty the whole time was definitely a twist, but the fact he had a grave at all raises a question or two about how the mirror works. If you get pulled into the mirror, you automatically become dead/a ghost, but if you get summoned by the mirror and pulled out of it, do you just instantaneously become alive again? Does your dead body cease to exist once you come back to life via mirror spell? Was the grave always empty/ put there as a front so no one suspects a thing?

. According to TvTropes, Betty Ann from Ghost Island is confirmed to be the same Betty Ann from the original series. I'm taking this with a bit more than a grain of salt because it never says who it's confirmed by. Where's the link, OP? Where's the receipt?

. The reason Lucia casually walks past Leo and Max as they're heroically sacrificing themselves wasn't because one was a ghost or they genuinely cared about each other like I initially thought, but because they aren't who she's actually after

.Not gonna lie, during the Charlie Charlie scene in episode 2, when Summer asked Bella who Summer's secret crush was, the angle of the reveal shot made it look like the pencil pointed at Kayla and I, out loud and in my family's living room with my parents nearby, shouted "Love wins again!". Boy was I wrong later.

This was a majority of the details, tidbits, and minor theories I noticed. Also I'm not counting references to the original series as details.

[femalechibiblogger]

My Top 10 Underrated Anime Series

1. Welcome to the NHK

Plot: The main protagonist is Tatsuhiro Satō, a university dropout entering his fourth year of unemployment. He leads a reclusive life as a hikikomori, ultimately coming to the conclusion that this happened due to some sort of conspiracy. One day just when his life seems entirely unchanging, he meets Misaki Nakahara, a mysterious girl who claims to be able to cure Tatsuhiro of his hikikomori ways. She presents him with a contract basically outlining that once a day they would meet in the evening in a local park where Misaki would lecture to Tatsuhiro in an effort to rid him of his lifestyle. During these outings, many subjects are discussed, though they almost always pertain in some way to psychology or psychoanalysis. One of their first meetings in fact deals with interpreting Tatsuhiro's recent dreams. Both Tatsuhiro and Misaki, however, have a tendency of over-doing things, such as hiding the truth, especially from each other and themselves. Despite Misaki's offer and pressing attempts at salvation, it is Tatsuhiro's neighbor and high school friend, Kaoru Yamazaki, whom Tatsuhiro often turns to in moments of need and support. Despite his own idiosyncrasies, Yamazaki is one of the more stable characters in the story.

While many may not know about this series, those who do know of its existence can see it’s appeal. This anime shows that some people, like the main character, are shut-in’s due to social anxiety holding them back from living a regular life. The anime deals with subjects such as social anxiety, hiding depression from loved ones, paranoia, and a crippling fear of never being accepted by the outside world. 

Throughout the series, Sato tries to go outside more often and is pushed to do this by a high school girl, Misaki, and his old classmate now neighbor, Kaoru. All the while, Sato meets some people from his past who cause him to go down a different path, such as becoming part of a ponzi scheme or joining a suicide group, because they themselves have problems that he unknowingly becomes a part of. This goes to show that if you have struggles with batting depression or have family problems...seek proper help before bringing others down with you.

2. Tiger & Bunny

Plot: The series takes place in "NC 1978" in a fictional, re-imagined version of New York City called Stern Bild City, where 45 years before, superpowered individuals known as "NEXT" (an acronym standing for Noted Entities with eXtraordinary Talents) started appearing and some of them became superheroes. Each of the city's most famous superheroes work for a sponsor company and their uniforms also contain advertising for real-life companies. Their heroic activity is broadcast on the popular television show "Hero TV", where they accumulate points for each heroic feat accomplished (arresting criminals or saving civilians, for example) and the best ranked hero of the season is crowned "King of Heroes". The story mainly focuses on veteran hero Kotetsu T. Kaburagi, a.k.a. Wild Tiger, who is assigned a new partner: a young man named Barnaby Brooks, Jr. However, Barnaby and Kotetsu have trouble working together, as they have conflicting opinions on how a superhero should act, while at the same time they are trying to crack the mystery of the murder of Barnaby's parents. In addition, the appearance of a homicidal vigilante NEXT named "Lunatic" stirs up the public and makes them question the place of heroes in the city. 

The main heroes, Kotetsu and Barnaby, do not like each other at first...but a strong bond grows between them as they protect the city and help each other from the tragic moments of their pasts. They even help each other with the problems that they face within the series’ current timeline: Kotetsu slowly losing his powers, and Barnaby being manipulated by someone who he thought of like family. 

While not as big as My Hero Academia, this series still has lots of good moments, terrific super heroes, and powerful storylines. Tiger & Bunny is definitely worth watching for anyone who loves superheroes and anime.

3. My Roommate Is A Cat

Plot: Novelist Subaru Mikazuki, who is shy and not good with other people, and Haru, the cat that has been living a severe stray life. This is a story of them suddenly living together and describes the happiness of living together from both point of views.

This series is definitely underrated. My Roommate is a Cat is filled shows how much of an impact a person...or in this case a cat...can have on a person who has lived a life of solitude and books. The main character, Subaru Mikazuki, begins to slowly open up to those around him thanks to the help of a stray cat: Haru. From Haru’s point of view, Subaru is someone whom she desires to protect and take care of, as she fears that he cannot survive without her. Subaru also comes to term with his parents’ deaths and learns to move past his guilt, and realizes that there are many people who love and care for him.

This series shows that it’s ok to open up to the people around you, and that no one is truly alone.

4. And Yet The Town Moves

Plot: Hotori Arashiyama loves mysteries, but there’s one she just can’t solve: why does the solution to one problem inevitably seem to lead to another? Like how when Hotori has to start working at the Seaside Maid Cafe after school to pay off a debt and her friend Toshiko fortunately knows exactly how a Maid Cafe should be run. Which is fortunate since Hotori has no clue. Except that, unfortunately, Toshiko has no interest in working at the cafe—until she discovers that Hotori’s childhood friend Hiroyuki is a regular. Which SEEMS fortunate. Except that Hotori doesn’t know that, while Toshiko likes Hiroyuki, Hiroyuki secretly likes Hotori, while Hotori secretly has a crush on… No, no more spoilers!But if that’s not enough drama, there’s work, angst with a certain math teacher, table tennis between her classmates, her younger brother versus the school’s bad girl… And yet, even though everything seems like it’s going to crash at any moment, somehow Hotori’s life keeps going hilariously forward.

Sure...it doesn’t have sexy and cute maids that most maid-theme anime has... But And Yet The Town Moves is still a series worth watching. The series features cute, slice-of-life storylines filled with antics by the mystery-loving Hotori Arashiyama. Because of her crazy antics and goofy nature, Hotori brings laughter and new experiences to those around her. 

If you want an anime featuring klutzy maids and funny slice of life, then And Yet The Town Moves is definitely the right choice. 

5. Keep Your Hands Off Eizouken!

Plot: Midori Asakusa wants to create an anime, but she's too disheartened to make that first step by herself. By pure chance, she meets Tsubame Mizusaki, an up-and-coming socialite secretly dreaming of becoming an animator. Together with Midori's money-loving best friend Sayaka Kanamori, the energetic trio start the "Eizouken" club and slowly work towards making their "greatest world" a reality.

This anime is truly a one-of-a-kind masterpiece. Keep Your Hands Off Eizouken! has animation that is truly breathtaking and filled with the imaginations of aspiring animators. Throughout the series, our three protagonists: Midori, Sayaki, Tsubame experience the hardships of running their own studio, all the while dealing with the Student Council and School Board who wish to shut down Eizouken. But no matter how hard they try, there is no stopping these three girls from making anime and running their studio. 

Keep Your Hands Off Eizouken! has such brilliant animation, creative storylines, and normal looking characters who viewers can relate to. If your dream is to become an animator, than you certainly learn a lot from this series.

6. Angels of Death

Plot: 13-year old Rachel awakens to find herself trapped in the basement of an abandoned building. Without any memories, or even a clue as to where she could be, she wanders the building, lost and dizzy. In her search, she comes across a man covered in bandages. He introduces himself as Zack and he wields a grim-reaper like sickle.A strange bond is struck between them, strengthened by strange, crazy promises…These two, trapped in this strange building, don’t know why fate has placed them there. But they will work together desperately to find a way out…

Rachel and Zack are quite an unlikely duo...yet their skills and personalities are what complete each other: Rachel is calm and calculating, while Zack is aggressive and strong. But they have something in common: They both suffered their whole lives, became killers, and being killers is what got them trapped in the mysterious building in the first place. Together, they face various serial killers who want to keep them from escaping: A doctor with an eye fetish, a pumpkin-headed child who wants to bury Rachel in his graveyard, a female-prison warden who’s obsessed with punishing ‘sinners’, and a faithless priest whose goal is to test the faith of those who fall victim to the killers within the building. 

Angels of Death is filled with such mystery and psychological thrills. While it is not for the faint of heart...it is definitely for those who wish to find a good psychological thriller to watch.

7. Zombieland Saga

Plot: In the year 2008, high school student Sakura Minamoto is abruptly killed by a truck on the morning she plans to submit an idol application. Ten years later, Sakura, along with six "legendary" girls from various eras of Japan's history, are brought back as zombies by a man named Kotaro Tatsumi, who seeks to revitalize Saga Prefecture by putting together an all-zombie idol group known as Franchouchou.

Unlike most ‘pop idol’ anime series, that feature cute girls whose music can save the world...this one features cute girls who are zombies who were brought back to life to save a city as a pop idol group. While it seems unusual, Zombieland Saga shows the viewers all the things that Saga has to offer...because it basically advertises the entire prefecture. The members of Franchouchou: Sakura, Saki, Ai, Junko, Lily, Yugiri, and Tae...are determined to become a great idol group while keeping their true identities a secret. Thanks to their mysterious manager, Kotaro Tatsumi, they are given a second chance at life and learn more about each other...but they also help each other move on from their deaths and give closure to the loved ones that they had to leave behind. 

If you are looking for a ‘pop idol girl’ anime that is different from others...then Zombieland Saga is definitely a good choice, as it does differ from the usual plots that anime featuring pop idol groups has.

8. Mitsuboshi Colors

Plot: Set in Ueno. The series follows three elementary school girls, Yui, Sat-chan, and Kotoha, who together form an organization known as "Colors". Together, they perform various deeds and errands to protect the peace in their town.

This series is very adorable and is filled with a lot of hilarity. What makes it hilarious, are the crazy antics of the crybaby Yui, the rambunctious Sat-chan, and the dark-humored Kotoha as they try to help others and maintain the peace in the town that they love so much. They recieve help from local shop owner, Pops, who gives them clues to solve, and are often coming into conflict with police officer Saito, who sees them as nothing but trouble while dealing with their childish antics. 

Mitsuboshi Colors really does make you want to go to the real Ueno in Japan, and see all the shops featured within this series.

9. Lovely Muco

Plot: The series depicts the life of the pet dog Muco and his owner Komatsu, who lives in his glass-making workshop in the mountains.

Lovely Muco shows life through the eyes of Muco, a shiba inu who lives in a mountain town with her owner, Komatsu, who works as a glass blower. Muco is an energetic dog who finds everything around her fascinating. Muco loves Komatsu more than anything in the world, who gives her lots of love in return. Muco also interacts with other people such as Komatsu’s long-time friend, Ushikou-san, bar owner Bouda and his energetic daughter Rena. 

Lovely Muco shows the viewer how the world looks through the eyes of a dog, and what goes through their curious minds.

10. Chi’s Sweet Home

Plot: A grey and white kitten with black stripes wanders away from her mother and siblings one day while enjoying a walk outside with her family. Lost in her surroundings, the kitten struggles to find her family and instead is found by a young boy, Youhei, and his mother. They take the kitten home, but, as pets are not allowed in their housing complex, they try to find her a new home. This proves to be difficult, and the family decides to keep the kitten. While being housebroken, the kitten mistakenly answers to "Chi" (as in shi- from shikko, the Japanese word for "urine") and this becomes her name. Chi then lives with her new family, learning about different things and meeting new people and animals.

This series is filled with so much love and cuteness that it could give you diabetes. Chi’s New Home shows viewers how the world looks through the eyes young kitten ‘Chi’, as she grows to love her human family and makes new friends along the way. Chi and her family love each other greatly, and cannot imagine living without each other.

Chi’s Sweet Home shows us just how important family is, and how a new member of one’s family can bring so much love and joy into one’s life.

[renatogpadilla]

FFVI as a D&D Campaign:

OK, so I've been watching "Critical Role" (Campaign 1, Episode 31, no spoilers!) a LOT lately and it got me thinking how FFVI (arguably the BEST "Final Fantasy" game out there) is essentialy that. The biggest moments could be atributted to CRAZY rolls! I can see each of the characters being played by one of the people at the table! * Marisha as Terra Branford: Would be phenomenal. Her mentality is kinda in-line with Keyleth's. The "Kill Their Own Emotions" moment in the boat shakes the table as a whole. And when it's time to run an orphanage and protect her kids from Humbaba, the emotion in her voice destroys everyone in the Party. The "Mama?" moment becomes the most fan-arted moment for her character until the final fight. Her Trance ability is agreed to be the coolest looking skill at the table. To say nothing of the way she'd react to the whole Slave Crown bussiness!

Matt: "She killed 50 imperial soldiers in a few minutes." Marisha, and the whole table: *S H A K I N G*

* Taliesin as Locke Cole: "Treasure Hunter!" every single time somebody calls him a thief or a rogue. The "Rachel" story would be absolutely heartbreaking with Taliesin's expressions. The solo-sneak through the town while meeting Celes would be one of the highlights of the Campaign... That and his frienship with Terra would only be accentuated by Taliesin's and Marisha's irl friendship. Not to mention him puking on the ship would serve as some comedic timing straight out of "Critical Role"! Also, "That bow looks good on you" LAUNCHES the ship to heights undreamt of.

* Sam as Edgar Figaro: I mean, COME ON! IT WRITES ITSELF! Besides, it would be enjoyable to see him use his -Artificer- Machinist abilities as creatively as he does! Can you IMAGINE him rolling high enough one day and then he just creates the Noiseblaster? And with that he pulls out the microphone every time he uses it and proceeds to shout some thing Scanlan would be proud of... Not to mention his friendship with Sabin would be amazing if played by Sam! "The little shrimp has become a mighty Lobster!" You can HEAR Sam Riegel's voice come out of that! And the two headed coin? Now THAT's a Scanlan! This without mentioning the violations of the Geneva Convention that the Bioblaster would certainly entail...

* Laura as Celes Chere: I mean, OBVIOUSLY. Meeting Locke in the dungeon? The apparent betrayal? THE OPERA HOUSE?! "I'm a former General, not some... Opera floozy!" TELL ME you don't hear Laura Bailey saying that! And then she rolls a Natural 20 on performance and EVERYONE looses their shit! Her Runic ability is the target of MANY close saves. Also, the way Locke and Celes' interactions happen, she'd be perfect opposite Taliesin. The chat on the bridge in Albrook? HEARTSTOPPING. The attempted suicide? You KNOW Matt would call the sesion there!

* Travis as Sabin Figaro: This one was obvious. Monk/Barb that gets mistaken for a bear, and acts like an absolute teddy bear around Terra? Yes. Gods above, YES. "You think a tiny thing like the end of the world was going to be enough to keep me down?" You heard Grog too, right? The moments would be worth MILLIONS. The Opera house and Travis going "Why is everyone singing?" and then getting more and more into it! Him holding up the house for Celes! "MISTER THOU"... But best of all, and probably the single most famous Sabin moment EVER, The Phantom Train:

Matt: The train tracks suddenly lurch to the side. Even after this long and hard-fought battle it seems *chukles* it seems this train isn't letting you get away with your lives. That brings us to you, Travis! Travis, on his 5000 IQ shit: I grapple the train.

Entire Table: ARE YOU FUCKING NUTS?!?!

Matt: No way in hell are you gonna- You know what? Roll for it. *Picks up dice for the Train* Taliesin: He's dead. He's so fucking dea-

Travis: NATURAL 20.

Entire Table: *Silent disbelief, everyone looks at Matt*.

Matt: *Also in disbelief* ...Rolled a 1.

Entire Table: *Inintelligeble gasping and hyperventilating*

Travis: I'm going to use my last Blitz as Meteor Strike and suplex the Train!

Matt: *Looking at the sheet, knowing damn well what's about to happen* Go ahead and roll for damage...

Travis: *Rolls for damage*

Matt: *Braces for impact* How do you wanna do this?

Entire Table and the Internet: *EXPLODES*

The Fanart keeps coming, even YEARS after the Campaign is done...

* Liam as Setzer Gabbiani: Since he's LITERALY "Mister Steal Your Girl", I think Liam would be PERFECT. Just imagine him getting set up as this suave and smooth rougue who wanted to kidnap a beautiful singer and then gets Laura instead! (Which isn't entirely wrong...) IMAGINE his expresions and his dissapearing under the table laughing as the others barely climb aboard The Blackjack. THE ENTIRE PARTY giving him shit for a low roll on a Wisdom Check (the double-headed coin) and him segwaying that into joining the party, only to find out that he actually knew all along... Priceless. The total and undistilled heartbreak as his ship falls apart, him trying to reach out for Terra and everyone falling on different places. And then meeting Celes a year later and doing the whole Daryll story... Liam would be the one to steal the audience every time he takes the spotlight! Though he would be a little like Percy in the sense that he doesn't get much to do until his arc happens.

"Money, Money, Money!" every time he throws coins to attack, the loaded dice (in character, not at the table?) and the card throws would make him so stylish in a D&D setting I'll be surprised if somebody hasn't done it already.

* Ashley as Relm Arrowny: She takes forever to join because of her constantly being away for filming, but once she's here? HOO BOY, does the fun keep coming! Her paintings coming alive and helping them fight? Her giving Sam shit for Edgar's love life? "Fuddy-Duddy!" becoming A Thing? All of those moments would be hilarious... But probably her most notorious moment comes when they find her a year later, serving a posessed brush, telling her to paint, paint, paint under the Magic House... "Keep painting until I'm complete..." The party snaps her out of it before she finishes the greatest painting she's ever done, her Magnum Opus, and then the painting coming alive prematurely in order to force her to finish... To give her form. And then the Lakshmi boss fight happens... Matt: And with the last of her strength gone, the banshee-like apparition dissipates into mist, and before any of you can react, Relm's magic brush begins to glow, like it had when you first came in here. The glow slowly creeps off the hairs and darts! Off towards the mistified form of it's mistress, enveloping itself into a thicc layer on top of the mist, swirling around... and around and around.

Ashley: Oh god, now what?

Matt: The colors dissipate, and Lakshmi unleashes a terrible wail! *DM monster noises* As it is now joined with this colorful cloud... And it compresses, smaller and smaller... And more solid until it's not mist anymore.

Marisha: *Gets it* ¡WAIT A MINUTE!

Travis: *Exited* ¡OH SHIT, HOLD ON!

Matt: The fog dissipates... And the calm returns to Relm's senses. Ashley you are now holding an innert, ordinary paint brush. However! Floating in the air, you see a crystal with a small glowing core, the particular essence of Life embeded in the middle, Terra you *points at Marisha* feel this and recognize it instantly, as it falls to the ground, and bounces a couple times... A brand new shard of Magicite.

Party: *FERAL LOOTING*

"Lakshmi" becomes the most PAINFUL fanart to make, and it's ALWAYS the one that's valued the most among the fandom.

The rest of the Party (Strago, Umaro, Mog, Cyan, Gau and GoGo) can be the guests that come over every once in a while (I particualrly see Wil Wheaton as Strago Magus, Mary McGlynn as GoGo and Will Friedle as Clyde "Shadow" Arrowny) with Shadow coming and going with the excuse that "His contract is up" (and let's face it, after surviving/witnessing the Phantom Train? My contract would be up too...) and coming back whenever his schedule/the plot allows. Eventually, everyone comes together for one last session and the battle with God Kefka. Setting their affairs in order, the reveal of who Shadow really is during a lone chat with Strago shakes the Critters to their core. Everything makes sense! Why Interceptor went straight to Relm when they met... Why his nightmares kept showing a village of magic users, yet they never mention Shadow in Thamasa! The group is RATTLED and wether or not he survives at the end becomes a HEATED argument between everyone at the table. Only Strago knows the truth...

The sendoff on The Falcon with everyone saying goodbye and seeing what the World will bring next is regarded as one of the most emotional scenes in "Critical Role" history... But the most completely DESTRUCTIVE force in this entire cast is Matt Mercer as Kefka Palazzo:

The personality... the narrative... The absolute slime in his voice when he poisons Doma. When he kills Leo and brings forth the Light of Judgement. Matt definitely has his moments playing Ultros. He's fun! And Emperor Ghestal was more of a political "Darth Sidious" villain. But Kefka? OH, LORD. NOBODY was ready for Kefka. "Enjoy the barbicue!" gets memed to no end, while also sending a horrible shiver down people's spine whenever somebody brings it up. Truly, the villain to end all villains. I can see it happen so vividly... If anybody wants to talk about this more, PLEASE hit me up! This just feels too good! Until off course the party moves on to their next Campaign in the setting for "Final Fantasy 5" but that's a whole OTHER can of worms!

[sincerelyreidburke]

reid burke throws a banger new year party send tweet

You’re so, so correct, Rachel. Your takes are always impeccable. Reid throws a great party in general (see here for example). The college parties he throws in Duffy Hall, Apartment 3 are fantastic, not to mention full of sentimental value because Reid loves college and the friends he meets there— but Reid can’t throw a New Year’s party at college, because nobody is at college on New Year’s.

I wager that Reid’s best New Year’s parties take place once he makes his way into success in his career, because that translates to him and Bri finally having money. In other words, Reid as a twentysomething famous comedian throwing New Year’s parties in his New York penthouse. Thanks for your time.

Or: have this.

//

new year’s eve, 2022-23

Bri lost track of her husband ten minutes ago.

This would be okay, because sometimes, at parties, these things just happen. You get caught up talking to somebody, and then suddenly you can’t find the person you came here with. Bri guesses she didn’t ‘come here’ with Reid, given that it’s their party and they’re the hosts, but all the same, she gets that being separated from him is just something that happens.

She’s been having a great conversation with his friend Myra, a fellow writer at SNL, for the past twenty or so minutes. Bri loves Myra, and is so, so grateful that she actually gets along with Reid’s friends. It’s not that she has a bad history when it comes to befriending the people he attracts socially, it’s just... moving to New York was a lot. She grew up in the middle of nowhere, so much so that even Kiersey, New Hampshire seemed like a big town when she moved there for college. New York has been a dream of hers for a long time, and a dream of Reid’s, too— that’s one of the many reasons they fit together so well. It’s just that dreaming about moving to New York and then actually doing it are two different things.

Luckily for her, that was almost five years ago. And though it was hard at first, things are looking up. Which is why she’s no longer stressed out about getting along with Reid’s showbiz friends.

Anyway, the point is. It would be fine that she lost Reid at their party, since it’s just as much her party as it is his. But it’s four minutes to midnight. Which makes it a small problem.

“I have no idea where Reid went,” she tells Myra, who laughs.

“I feel like he’s always hard to pin down at these things,” Myra says, scanning the room as she speaks. “I... don’t think I see him right now.”

“Neither do I,” she replies, and goes on her tiptoes like that’ll help (it doesn’t). Their place is packed— in a good way, but still packed— and it’s hard to pick Reid out of the group. She glances at the time— 11:57— and gives Myra an apologetic smile. “I think I’ll go track him down.”

Myra lifts her drink, with a smile. “Cheers to that!” she says, and Bri makes her way into the party on her own devices. She smiles at friends as she goes, and rakes the room. She truly has no idea where he went, and she’s wondering if she should call him or something. The odds he has his phone on him are slim, but even still.......

And then— “Babe!”

His voice cuts through the crowd, loud and full of energy; he’s at peak extrovert right now, and he’ll probably have to unwind from it later. Right now, though, nothing about him looks forced— when she catches sight of him through the crowd, he looks— exuberant, almost, like he’s having the time of his life. His plaid tie is crooked against his white shirt, and he’s still wearing the gold, plastic New Year’s crown he started the night off in. His smile, Bri can tell, is completely natural. There’s no sign of Reid’s mental health ruining the night for him.

He genuinely, completely, is having a great time.

Bri smiles, and waves. “I thought I lost you,” she calls, as he makes his way to her.

“Me, too!” Reid cries. He grabs her hands when he reaches her. “Sorry; I’m sorry. I got Tommy talking, and you know how he gets.” He grins, as she laughs a little and nods— Reid’s comic friend Tom is a trip. “And I just now realized what time it was,” he adds. “We’re almost there!”

Bri squeezes his hands. “We are almost there,” she replies, and smiles up at him. He’s definitely a little buzzed, but in a fun way, not a bad way. “How do you feel?”

“I’ll tell you,” he says, and then leans right down to her ear. She can smell the champagne on him, and his cheek is warm when it presses against hers. She laughs, and waits. When he speaks, he’s still sort of talking loudly, to be heard over the party noise— but she knows it’s just for her. “Babe, I feel like a million bucks.”

“Good,” Bri laughs. She pulls back to meet his eyes, and holds his cheek for just a second before she drops her hand. “I’m glad to hear you say that.”

“Me, too!” Reid cries. He pulls her by the hand, and it takes her a second to realize he’s moving them toward the window. “C’mon,” he says. “We’ll see all the fireworks this way.”

Bri follows, and keeps laughing as she goes. She can’t help it— this man makes the entire world brighter. Their apartment is full of champagne, plastic gold crowns, and friends from a high life she never dreamed could be hers. Or, theirs. They’re about to start a new year, on the highest point they’ve started any year in their lives. Things are good— things are looking up.

Reid is right. It’ll make you feel like a million bucks.

When the countdown starts, it’s like a traveling murmur through the general noise. Reid is fully an instigator of it, egging friends around them on. They start around twenty, and by ten, it’s really getting loud— so Bri joins in.

“... 8... 7... 6... 5... 4... 3... 2... 1... happy new year!”

Both inside and outside the windows of their apartment, the city explodes. Bri can see fireworks going up all over the place straight out in the dark night, but it’s an even better sight to look out over what’s going on inside. There’s a little confetti, though she isn’t sure what it came from, and it feels like the whole place is glittering.

Best of all is Reid. He cheers the new year for a moment, and then grabs her and delivers a New Year’s kiss that could sweep a girl right off her feet. Bri stays steady, for the most party, and laughs when they pull away.

“Happy New Year,” he says, so close his glasses are fogging a little. “I love you.”

“I love you, too,” she tells him, and so, by the city light through the window, surrounded by the party inside, Bri rings in what she feels like is going to be their best year yet.

[missrkl]

The Temple Chapter Four

Rachel was at home by now. She had a lot things to be dealing with. Her emotions was one of them. Rachel got on her knees and prayed this prayer:

“Listen to this prayer of mine, God; pay attention to what I’m asking. Answer me—you’re famous for your answers! Do what’s right for me. But don’t, please don’t, haul me into court; not a person alive would be acquitted there. The enemy hunted me down; he kicked me and stomped me within an inch of my life. He put me in a black hole, buried me like a corpse in that dungeon. I sat there in despair, my spirit draining away, my heart heavy, like lead. I remembered the old days, went over all you’ve done, pondered the ways you’ve worked, Stretched out my hands to you, as thirsty for you as a desert thirsty for rain. Hurry with your answer, God! I’m nearly at the end of my rope. Don’t turn away; don’t ignore me! That would be certain death. If you wake me each morning with the sound of your loving voice, I’ll go to sleep each night trusting in you. Point out the road I must travel; I’m all ears, all eyes before you. Save me from my enemies, God— you’re my only hope! Teach me how to live to please you, because you’re my God. Lead me by your blessed Spirit into cleared and level pastureland. Keep up your reputation, God—give me life! In your justice, get me out of this trouble! In your great love, vanquish my enemies; make a clean sweep of those who harass me. And why? Because I’m your servant.”

‭‭Psalm‬ ‭143:1-12‬ ‭MSG‬‬

Rachel knew that she couldn’t confront the people in The Temple if she herself was in sin, or if she didn’t pray. Prayer was everything in this kingdom. Prayer was the gateway to Adon, a way to get into His presence, a way to speak with Him and to hear Him speak to you. It was about a relationship, not a way of daily activities. Worship also did that. Worship wasn’t always the way The Elitists did it. Worship was about having the heart of worship, really knowing Adon and being grateful for Him and all that he’s done. His protection, his breath of life, his mercy and Grace, his forgiveness, his protection, blessings and so much more. Rachel chose to pray some more:

“Generous in love—God, give grace! Huge in mercy—wipe out my bad record. Scrub away my guilt, soak out my sins in your laundry. I know how bad I’ve been; my sins are staring me down. You’re the One I’ve violated, and you’ve seen it all, seen the full extent of my evil. You have all the facts before you; whatever you decide about me is fair. I’ve been out of step with you for a long time, in the wrong since before I was born. What you’re after is truth from the inside out. Enter me, then; conceive a new, true life. Soak me in your laundry and I’ll come out clean, scrub me and I’ll have a snow-white life. Tune me in to foot-tapping songs, set these once-broken bones to dancing. Don’t look too close for blemishes, give me a clean bill of health. God, make a fresh start in me, shape a Genesis week from the chaos of my life. Don’t throw me out with the trash, or fail to breathe holiness in me. Bring me back from gray exile, put a fresh wind in my sails! Give me a job teaching rebels your ways so the lost can find their way home. Commute my death sentence, God, my salvation God, and I’ll sing anthems to your life-giving ways. Unbutton my lips, dear God; I’ll let loose with your praise. Going through the motions doesn’t please you, a flawless performance is nothing to you. I learned God-worship when my pride was shattered. Heart-shattered lives ready for love don’t for a moment escape God’s notice. Make Zion the place you delight in, repair Jerusalem’s broken-down walls. Then you’ll get real worship from us, acts of worship small and large, Including all the bulls they can heave onto your altar!”

‭‭Psalm‬ ‭51:1-19‬ ‭MSG‬‬

Rachel was getting tearful by now. Adon’s presence was strong, she knew she had been forgiven now for Adon was “The Lord is merciful and compassionate, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love.” (Psalms‬ ‭145:8‬ ‭NLT‬‬). The only thing required was confession and repentance, meaning to turn away from ones sin.

Rachel knew that the line between confronting a people between ‘love and hate’ could get blurry. You could hate what a person did, but you should never hate the person. You could be angry at what a person or a people are doing, but never hate them. You never should hold bitterness in your heart. That’s why Rachel did her best at all times to deal with anything that could truly lead to immense hatred, bitterness, rage, anger, malice. This is what a lot of the Temple people operated in within their secluded groups. This is what they gossiped about within their social circles that they kept closed. That is what segregation and separation did and they were blind to it. Rachel didn’t know why. The leaders always talked about ‘family, friendships and unconditional love’ but they never actually displayed it. Rachel didn’t understand where they went wrong. The history of The Temple was extremely powerful, supernatural even. Healings, miracles, signs and wonders, yet all that went away, it went away because they had departed from the faith and gone straight back into The Law. The Law was something that was before Christ, a ritualistic laws of orders that they had to obey to the thousandth degree, and if they even failed at one aspect they would die, get cut off, be separated, for life. Then Christ came along, Adon in human flesh, taking all the punishment of their sins and therefore fulfilling the law. The Holy Lamb of God who had come to take away the sins of this world (John 1:29). Rachel was sure The Temple had missed their mark and somehow they needed a Billy Graham to set them right again. She didn’t know if she was that ‘one’ either way, too many people had been hurt and wounded in this house, and it was time someone done something about it. Most especially about the gossips within the place. The gossips.

Everyone didn’t think much of The Voiceless, they were seen as ‘none-important nobodies that weren’t worthy of their space or time.’ Categorised and labelled as ‘defects within the society’ The Voiceless could only dream of ever truly belonging, being a part, called a family, labelled a friend, given love, given comfort, given support, given protection, given faith, loyalty and so much more. So far, In this temple, you had to ‘earn your love, family, friend, comfort, peace, protection, support, faith and loyalty.’ It wasn’t given just because Adon Christ had bought it for you. Plus The Voiceless were seen as a people who would ‘never be worthy’ of any of that because they weren’t Elite, they weren’t Dazzlers, they weren’t Argumentalists, they weren’t Loyalists. Instead they were seen as ‘outcasts’ and ‘foreign’ and ‘ugly.’ This is what Rachel had to contend with. The Holy Book of Adon told her one thing, told her she was loved, favoured, forgiven, unconditionally loved, comforted, belonged, ingrafted into the vine. Yet thee people seemed to work their hardest to cut The Voiceless out of the vine, clearly seeing them as either a threat or a demonic force under the name of Jezebel. Because they had no favour with the leadership of the place, all they could do and be was ‘voiceless.’

Unknown to Rachel was the spiritual battle within the heavenly realms, The Dragon was there in the presence of Adon breathing his fire of hatred, dividing the people. The Dragon used to be a Royal Prince carrying the worship of Adon to Adon himself, but he had fallen, he had missed the mark. Like the Elitists he had become proud of his own beauty, he wanted to be his own god, he thought he could do a better job than Adon ever could, even though Adon had created him. The Dragon was there accusing Rachel of only being a Good Steward of The Faith because she had always been protected as a little girl, because Adon was always looking out for her. Adon complied saying that Rachel was a ‘good and faithful servant’ and had permitted The Dragon to drive her into the ground. The Dragon did this by making sure she was ‘always alone, always unwanted, always uncared for, always rejected, always hated, always seen as a threat. Labelled a lunatic, psychotic, vengeful and angry person.’ That was the talk of the town about her. Yet nobody, not one person, sat down with her ‘in person or face to face’ to get to know her. Instead they had all ‘worn masks’ to hide their petty little white lies of hard hearted ness, self-centredness and truly cruel acts of highly despicable behaviours that went on ‘behind closed doors’ where the cameras couldn’t see. You see, The Temple had a ‘strong surveillance team’ they were the ones who protected The Temple from unwanted guests and the likes of Charles who they all watched at night locking up for the night before breaking in, was only ‘the fringe’ of that surveillance team. These people were like hawks and not all of them had good agendas. A lot of them were ‘hypocrites in disguise’ veiling their faces with sweet little smiles of sweetness, but in reality that was again ‘a mask’ a weapon of disgrace. No Grace was to be found within this temple, only if their reputation was at steak did they ever consider showing any Grace ‘just to save their face.’ Their time was coming to an end, and Rachel? She had more to do than just ‘confront the people’ with their ‘masked society of fakeness.’ Rachel had a lot of forgiving to do first. She couldn’t attack something ‘with love’ if IF she hated them. That would just empower The Dragon to the highest level and completely destroy Adon’s Elysium Estate here on earth. This had to be done properly. So Rachel was here praying on into the night, biding her time, sorting herself out first. You never win the war without being prepared yourself. You never went to war without your armour on and Adon’s armour was Light, Forgiveness, Unconditional Love, Grace, strength, patience, long suffering, keeping no record of wrongs, gentleness and peace. Rachel still had a way to go with this armour, but with the help of Ecclesiasties and the gang she was getting there.

[ernhardt-atlas]

It Lives No More- Part 2

“

Summary: It’s been a 6 years since the events of It Lives Beneath have happened and the crew has mostly moved on from it. Parker’s nowhere to be found,  Danni has become the top writer for ClickIt, Tom’s graduated from Hartfield with his robotics degree and is working on starting his own shop, and Imogen is happily married to Athena Vance in Athena’s old home. One day in the summer the gang decides to get back together for a reunion trip to see each other.

Last Chapter: The gang (sans Parker, obviously) has gotten back together after years of going on thier own paths and are on their way to the movies to watch “Desire and Decorum: II”. Athena suffers a horrible nightmare about what happened in the events of It Lives Beneath. Even though she’s moved away from the town, the memories continue to haunt her.

“…so I was in a really low place when Sonia broke up with me at Hartfield, and the band and I decided to go on tour out of the country for a while,” Kaitlyn recalled, looking out the window. “We went to Japan, which is where I finally met Danni…”

The girls were getting set up at a local club in Tokyo. Amara offered to set up on the stage, Rachel had fucked off to God knows where (thankfully she always shows up just before the concert starts. So Kaitlyn was all alone in the VIP lounge room. She nursed a cup of champange, looking wistlessly at her phone.

For whatever reason, she went on social media to see how everyone was. Zack and Grant got engaged, Abbie and Tyler broke up but split the profits of the game they made equally, so now Abbie owns a museum with world famous artist Nadia Park. There have been rumors that she’s been seeing famous actress Gem of Hollywood, but neither has either confirmed and denied it. As for Tyler, he’s working with a team of techies to build what will be known as the Atlas so people can finally move out of Earth to other planets. Most people think he won’t be able to do it, but he’s teamed up with some of the top technicians in the country. No one knows their exact location, and aside from announcing the project, nothing’s been revealed yet. Zig’s been teaching in Japan, and he tweeted that he was gonna visit the concert soon. Chris is all over American news, but no one’s really surprised. Becca moved to New York and is gunning for the district attorney position.

Then…there was Sonia. After they broke up and  Sonia refused to get back together in London, she went back to London after graduating. She hesitated to look at Sonia’s page, but she clicked on it anyway. Sonia’s been featured on literature magazines around the world, been invited on several talk shows, and even helped with writing the script for the Desire and Decorum movie series. But that wasn’t what she was most focused on. Her most recent pictures…she had gotten with James while they collaborated on more playwrighting projects They were moving in with each other, and it looked like James was going to propse with the way he and Sonia talked about each other online. It hurt a lot to see, since she spent the past couple years trying to push Sonia and all her friends at Hartfield  out of her mind and only keep in contact with Abby.

A barista came over and placed a drink on Kaitlyn’s table.

“I didn’t order anything?” Kaitlyn said, confused.

“It’s from the lady sitting at the bar. Says her name’s Danni. She wants to talk to you.”

Kaitlyn wanted to say she wasn’t really intrested in talking to anyone when she got a glimpse of the woman the barista was  referring to. Within seconds, she was sitting with the girl at the bar.

“So we talked  for while before the concert,” Kaitlyn continued, back in the present. “She interviewed me for her company, but we also decided to sneak out of the concert for a while…we were back in time of course!”

“Her bandmates wouldn’t stop teasing her about it when we came back. Damn Kaitlyn was on fire that night,” Danni added. “You know she kept eye contact with me the whole time and blew me a kiss.”

“I invited her back to our hotel room to hang out with her during our stay in Tokyo and promised to see each other once we got back in America. We’ve been together ever since.”

“Awwww!” Imogen gushed. “Meeting the love of your life at a concert sounds so poetic and romantic.”

“Yeah, I met my wife here fighting lake monsters and trying to take down an evil cult,” Athena laughed. Imogen laughed as well, but not as earnestly. She looks down at her stomach. Athena noticed Imogen’s look and placed a gentle  hand on her stomach.

“For all I know, my mom could have been pregnant with me while she was working with the society,” Imogen murmured. “How long was she planning to keep all of that from me?”

“Genny...” Athena whispered softly, trying to ease her mind from her awful parents. Personally, she didn’t miss their controlling behavior towards Imogen and was secretly glad they were dead. Well, maybe there were less gory ways for them to die.

Imogen on the other hand, was unable to let them go. Athena didn’t blame her, as much as she despised her parents. In one summer, she lost her best friend, her parents, and her horse. Athena swore she’d do anything in her power to make her feel better about it.

“Getting close to your due date, huh, Genny?” Tom asked suddenly. “You sure this road trip is a good idea?”

Imogen snapped out of her funk. “Huh? Oh, I’ll be fine, as long as I don’t do anything too extreme. “

The van pulled up at the movie theare and they all climbed out. They paid for their tickets and headed inside.

Tom and Andy voluenteered to get snacks while the girls found their seats.  A few minutes later everyone was settled and ready to watch the movie. Kaitlyn and Imogen sighed as they watch Lady Clara woo Annabelle in the movie.

“I can’t wait till Clara does away with that awful Duke so she can live happily ever after with Miss Parsons,” Imogen whispered.

“Me as well. If that were me I would have probably killed the duke by now, keeping me away from the woman of my dreams,” Athena responded with a frown. Imogen rested her head on Athena’s shoulder in response. Athena pressed a gentle kiss to her wife’s forehead.

The two of them giggled a little and continue watching the movie. They’re about halfway into the movie when they heard soft snoring coming from behind them. Athena turns around and sees Tom and Andy sleeping peacefully, but clumsily.

“I guess the movie wasn’t their thing,” Kaitlyn giggled, only to find that Danni had also fallen asleep on her shoulder. “Damn, and I wanted to sneak in some movie kisses.”

Imogen gave Athena a coy smile, sliding into her lap.

“Normally I would complain about being unable to see the movie, but this view is 100 times better,” Athena chuckled as she wrapped an arm around Imogen’s waist and pulled her closer. Imogen tried to stifle her giggles as Athena peppered kisses on her cheeks.

Soon, the movie ended, and Athena turned around to wake up the sleeping young men behind them. Andy was the first to wake up, his face barely inches from Tom’s. He smirked.

“Not bad,” he said with a grin. Tom opened his eyes wide, blushing.

“Andy! I uh…I mean…I didn’t see you there!”

Tom and Andy untangled themselves from each other and got up from their seats. Andy stretched.

“I’m gonna go grab more snacks for the road,” he said, walking off.

“You’ve been dating him for what, 5 years? How do you still get so flustered around Andy?” Danni asked Tom.

“There’s a distinct difference between seeing someone as your best friend and seeing someone as the love of your life that you want to spend forever with, ok?” Tom stammered. “Yes, we’ve been dating for 5 years but I still feel the same way I did when he asked me out.”

“Seems you’ve got it bad for Andy then,” Kaitlyn joked. “If you love him so much, why don’t you marry him?”

“Well…” Tom trailed off. He stopped when he noticed the girls grinning at him. “N-not that I was planning for that to happen or anything!”

“Planning for what?” They hear Andy ask from behind them.

“Planning for this awesome night on the town Tom wanted to take you on once we got to the hotel,” Athena cut in, winking at Tom.  Tom frantically sliced a hand across his throat, but it’s too late.

Andy eagerly pulled him out of the theatre and into the car. Over his shoulder, Tom mouthed something but Athena can’t read his lips. She just smiled and mouthed, “You’re welcome.”

[daughterofelros]

You guys, I have this friend that I’m so proud of.

We went to elementary school together, we stayed friends all through the “girls shouldn’t be friends with boys” peer pressure. I remember amazing days with this group of guy friends and I clambering over rock walls in rain-drenched spring forests and taking over the elementary school playground to have elaborate sci-fi/fantasy flavored adventures, weaving in and out of the kids who wanted to to traditional things on the slide, like I don’t know...slide? Instead of battle dragons and rescue the part of our group trapped in the highest tower.

We’ve kept in touch throughout the years, chat whenever we run into each other when visiting our home town. He was in NYC for awhile, now he’s out in LA, and he’s having such an amazing glow up. He’s working in a lot of web-based shows, some podcasts, great stuff. He donates his time off to volunteer with kids, and he’s an amazing teller of stories. It’s been a little surreal honestly.

Sometimes I’ll walk into the Center (I run a college and career center in two really amazing urban high schools) and I’ll see my kids watching his videos. My partners will bring me links to great things he’s doing like they’re magpies with shiny metal going “this is your friend, right? This is so cool!”

I tend to send him messages whenever cool stuff like that happens, because I feel like on every platform, negativity floats to the top and I don’t think he’s on most platforms in a way that the crap can bombard him. I assume it exists, I steer clear of mentions of it myself, because it doesn’t do good things to my brain to see my friends attacked by trolls who hate anything that leans toward social justice.

He’s the sweetest— he recorded a video for me that I can play for my kids if they’re trying to cut class and hang out in my center. I use it long before security does a sweep and the kids who are resistant to following school policies would get in trouble. I sit down with them, and remind them that if I have to tell them a third time to go to class, I get to play the video. They say fine, end up laughing at the video, and heading back to class, feeling seen because a semi-famous comedy person talked to them in a video where he addresses me by name, and that’s way better than a security guard challenging them.

And I’m just so, so happy that, since I’ve gotten back on tumblr, I keep seeing posts where people talk about how much it means to them to see positive representation of the LGBTQIA+ community in the content he creates, how wonderful his comedy is. I’m so glad that the work he does with his life is having positive impacts for people, and you better believe I send him updates on every set of positive comments, because in 2020 I am fiercely committed to sharing things that I like, not just things that activate negative thoughts and prompt us to share those pieces of content disproportionately.

(I do not share the RPF Fic that I have stumbled across. Right now, he’s still a degree of separation removed from any RPF fandom I’ve read or written in, so we’re good there. My brain knows not to poke it. And honestly, I’m well-trained to not get weirded out my RPF of people I know in passing, so this is just one extra level of closeness.

Because seriously. I grew up in a weird, tiny town where I’d bump into famous actors on the street, and they’d tease me about my life choices. I held an Oscar when I was seven, because my father, who owned the town deli and knew everyone’s coffee and breakfast sandwich order, asked the winner of said Oscar if he could borrow it so my Mom could give a presentation to her grad school class about the modeling software they had used to predict the Oscar winners that year. Guys would talk about being in production meetings for The Godfather and people thinking the idea was crap. A famous actor’s tax return was misdelivered to my grandmother, so she drove it over to him the next day and he thanked her with tickets to his broadway show.

Famous sommeliers and four-star restauranteurs and producers live in town and like to give asshole tourists shitty country directions that take them on a nine mile loop past the tree with the owl on the Saunders farm if the tourists are being shitty to locals (all to get to a destination 1/4 mile away around the next curve in the road). Brad Pitt yelled at my parents for selling the story that he was in town for a few days, and my father calmly pointed out that the nice guy Brad had been chatting with over breakfast the day before was in fact the editor of the paper from the city across the river. Brad had disclosed his location himself.

One of the actors who came in to help stage student-written productions for the drama club in high school is an Oscar-winner now. It was weird to see her in a red carpet gown because I’ve never seen her wear anything other than baggy black sweatpants.

My Mom ran into Daniel Craig in the supermarket a few months back. She gave him advice on canned soup. She had no idea that the pleasant lady with him was Rachel Weisz. She likes movies Rachel Weisz is in, and it still didn’t register to her. She did make note the one time Katherine Hepburn came into the deli though.

My grandpa smoked weed with Willie Nelson when he came through town and stopped at one of the only other restaurants there- only celebrity he ever bothered getting out of bed for. I have a ceramic rabbit collection that belonged to my Uncle Gene and Uncle Bob. Uncle Bob wrote the book that the Chucky movies are based on. I have a collection of small rabbit figurines from the household of the man who created Chucky.

Another famous actor made me a coat rack when I was born, because he was in a wood-working phase. It’s mint green, there are cows on it, and the pegs kept falling out.

Another guys from the group of friends would routinely come home to find Steve Buscemi in his living room. His Mom was Steve’s preferred seamstress when he needed something altered.

It’s a weird life. And still, I’m the most proud of my friend. )

[acuppellarp]

Welcome (again) to A Cup-pella, Leigh! We’re excited to have you and Sage LeBlanc in the game! Please go through the checklist to make sure you’re ready to go and send in your account within the next 24 hours. 

OOC INFO

Name + pronouns: Leigh, she/her Age: 27 Timezone: EST Ships: Sage/Chemistry Anti-Ships: Sage/Forced

IC INFO

Full Name: Alessandra Sage “Sage” LeBlanc Face Claim: Vanessa Morgan Age/Birthday: 27/November 1 Occupation: Crime analyst for the NYPD Personality: Blunt, nihilistic, frigid, whip-smart, irritable Hometown: New Orleans, Louisiana Bio:

From the time she was born, Alessandra LeBlanc was too smart for her own good. As the younger of the LeBlanc sisters, Alessandra couldn’t have asked for a better childhood. While she grew up in a rural part of Louisana, her father was a famous jazz musician and moved the family to New Orleans when his band started catching a big break.

Alessandra loved living in New Orleans. There was so much culture, history, and folklore surrounding the town that she couldn’t help but get swept up in it. She would listen to stories about voodoo, Marie Laveau, ghost hunting, and of the incredible food. She and her sister, Alison, took the most pleasure in roaming the streets in the afternoons, listening to music pour out of the restaurants on Bourbon Street. Mardi Gras was a party that resulted in their mother cooking and baking up a storm.

Family was everything to Alessandra. First, her mother Rebecca, a wise and kind woman with soft eyes and an even softer heart, who worked as a cleaning woman in the local hotel. But she could bake, and she could play the piano. She’d often play the piano for Shaw, the patriarch of the household, who was a wizard on the tenor saxophone, and whose career in music was supposed to drive them from the slums to easy street. Then there was Alison, who embodied all of the best possible qualities of both parents. She was every bit of the perfect older sister to Alessandra– the guardian, the protector. They were happy, and family always came first.

Tragedy struck Alessandra over the course of two years, one after the other. Alessandra never saw either of them coming, but shortly after she turned twelve years old, she and her parents buried her fifteen year old sister after a terminal illness caught too late, to the point where nothing more could be done. Alessandra felt so lost in the world after that, and it’s where she started to flounder. Her dad stopped playing jazz. Her mom started resorting to take out. The streets of New Orleans had lost its magic, but the family wouldn’t be there for much longer.

When Katrina hit, Alessandra was in eighth grade, and her parents made the wise decision to move away from Louisana and into lower New York State, instead. Alessandra’s mother had family in the greater New York area, and it seemed like a good decision at the time. This was when she started going by Sage instead– new life, new name, right? Any hope of making something new for herself faded away. Unfortunately, they moved into a community where children had been friends since they were in diapers, and a sullen, moody, pink-haired child wasn’t exactly on the top of everyone’s list to be friends with.

Between Alison’s passing and being displaced from her home, Sage never quite bounced back from the charismatic, know-it-all that she once was. No more would she run up to her teachers and ask if they wanted to hear about a math proof, or a fun fact. She kept to herself and lost herself in a world of books. Other people’s stories distracted her from her own, and she was found getting in trouble in class for reading books when she should have been paying attention. Even when Sage would be randomly called on, she could always come up with the right answer. Sage had the curse of being smart and being bored.

This was why nobody was even remotely surprised when Sage graduated as the valedictorian of her class, with a full-ride scholarship to Columbia University. She majored in Criminal Studies with a minor in Women’s Literature. Part of Sage wanted to go ahead and pursue a law degree, but people aren’t really her thing. She’s much better off behind the scenes, analyzing data and helping to solve crimes in that manner.

Sage is heavy– mentally, emotionally. She isn’t friendly, and she isn’t kind. She’s not like her mother and never learned enough from her sister on how to face the world with a smile. Instead, Sage relies on her ability to push people away in order to get by. One might think that she wouldn’t thrive in an environment like Acuppella Cafe, because it is a place that thrives on community and togetherness. The cafe has given Sage just that– a community of people who understand her (and plenty of those who don’t) as well as some of her best friends in New York City.

Pets: An adopted Bengal cat named Nefertari. Sage is convinced that this cat is a reincarnation of the famed Egypitan queen. She’ll bend over backwards to tell you that, too.

Relationships:

Haley Sterling

Roommate. Sage can’t stand her, if she’s being completely honest, because Haley is far too peppy and happy for her own good. Sage thinks she’s a six year old child trapped in an adult body, and she has no patience for it. Sage tries to avoid her roommate as much as humanly possible.

Scout Solano

While these two don’t seem to have much in common on the surface, they’ve fallen into a benefits situation. Calling them friends might be a bit far. Sage thinks Scout is absolutely gorgeous and has no trouble admitting that, but she’d much prefer Scout with her mouth shut. Or occupied.

Darcy Allen

Best friends. There is absolutely nothing that Sage loves more than being able to sit in complete silence with someone and know that things are good. They’ll go on a hike, read a book, one of them will crack a joke, rinse and repeat. Sage would kill and die for her.

Naomi Puckerman

In order, the top three things that Sage cannot stand: overly flirtatious people, people who feel the need to constantly mention how hot they are, and people who vanish from their job for six months and leave the weird post-nasal drip dude with pocket protectors as the only person for Sage to talk to. Puck? Puck is all three of them. They work together for the NYPD and while Sage isn’t completely offended by Puck’s existence, she finds the other woman very hilarious. She’d deny it under oath, though.

Rachel Berry

Sage and Rachel bonded over having similar diets, and woefully looking inside the Acup pastry case. The two will often go out to lunch together and share their exercise habits and dietary tips.

EXTRA INFO

your worst nightmare/queensageoftheunderworld/i take hot showers to practice burning in hell:

Five latest tweets:

@queensageoftheunderworld: no one: literally no one: absolutely no one: men: I KNOW HOW TO WRITE STRONG FEMALE CHARACTERS!!!!!!! @queensageoftheunderworld: idc if it takes away my gold star gay card, spencer reid can fucking get it. @queensageoftheunderworld: guess who booked her next vacation to venice? poveglia island, here i come. @queensageoftheunderworld: pink hair, don’t care #imgoingpurplenext @queensageoftheunderworld: my apartment is haunted. check the thread below for all the details. makes dear daniel look like a kid’s bedtime story tbh

[atomicbritt]

A Big list of True Crime Podcasts

I was working on making an new True Crime masterlist but the podcast section was getting way too long. So enjoy listening to these great podcasts on real life crime! (feel free to add on)

74 Seconds: The story of a July 2016 traffic stop that ended with the world watching a man die, live on their phones. This is the story of that man, Philando Castile, and the officer who is about to go on trial for his death, Jeronimo Yanez. Through comprehensive reporting, MPR News examines this intersection of race, policing, justice and safety in America. A lot can happen in 74 seconds.

Accused: When Elizabeth Andes was found murdered in her Ohio apartment in 1978, police and prosecutors decided within hours it was an open-and-shut case. Two juries disagreed. The Cincinnati Enquirer investigates: Was the right guy charged, or did a killer walk free?

All Kill no Filla: Join comedians Rachel Fairburn and Kiri Pritchard - McLean as they explore a shared passion, serial killers. Each episode the pair will talk all things murder and macabre and have a right laugh doing it.

Already Gone Podcast: Stories of the missing, the murdered, the mysterious and the lost.

And that’s Why we drink: And That's Why We Drink is a paranormal and true crime podcast hosted by Christine Schiefer, Em Schulz, and boxed wine. Join us every Sunday for some chilling ghost stories and downright terrifying true crime stories.

Atlanta Monster: From the producers of Up and Vanished and HowStuffWorks, Atlanta Monster aims to tell the true story of one of Atlanta’s darkest secrets, almost 40 years later.

Australian True Crime: Think nothing ever happens in your town? Australia's suburbs are home to some of the most mysterious and disturbing true crime cases in the world. Meshel Laurie is a true crime obsessive. Emily Webb is a true crime author. And together with expert interviews with writers, victims, investigators and perpetrators, they probe the underbelly of our towns and suburbs, and uncover the darkness at the heart of Australian life.

Black Hands-A family Mass Murder: This is the story of a mass-murder that divided a nation - a story that began in a rickety old home on a cold June morning in 1994, where five members of a seemingly ordinary New Zealand family were gunned down. There were two suspects. One lay dead from a single bullet to the head. The other was the only survivor: David Bain. Since then the country has asked: who killed the Bain family? David or his father Robin? In this podcast, Martin van Beynen explores the case from start to finish, picking through evidence, the mysteries and motives, and interviewing never-before-spoken-to witnesses. He seeks to finally answer the question: Who was the killer?

Caliphate: In the war on terror, who is it that we’re really fighting? “Caliphate” follows Rukmini Callimachi, who covers terrorism for The New York Times, on her quest to understand ISIS. 

Canadian True Crime: An independent podcast telling stories of cruel people who committed heinous acts in Canada, with a focus on honouring and respecting victims and survivors.

Casefile: Fact is scarier than fiction.

The Cleaning of John Doe: True crime scene cleaning stories from your host, Vanessa Phearson. She takes you on a journey of her experiences cleaning up the aftermath of some of the grisliest, most heartbreaking and most intense cleanups a crime scene cleaner can face.

The Clearing: When April Balascio was 40 years old, something she’d feared for decades was finally proven true. Her father, Edward Wayne Edwards, really was a murderer. The Clearing is about what came after April called a detective in 2009 to tell him about her suspicions — a call that led to her father’s arrest and eventual conviction on multiple murders — and tracks the emotional journey as she and host Josh Dean dig back into her childhood, unravel the truth of her father’s life, and overturn a viral online narrative that had turned Edward Wayne Edwards into a kind of serial killer caricature.

Cold:  Susan Powell vanished on Dec. 7, 2009. Her body has never been found. From the beginning, West Valley City, Utah police suspected Susan's husband, Josh Powell, had murdered her. They never arrested him. COLD dives deep into the case files, uncovering never-before-heard details. You'll learn why Susan stayed with an abusive husband, why Josh did what he did and how the justice system failed Susan and her two boys.

The Color Line Murders: Historical true crime podcast telling the stories of lynching victims in the American South

Court Junkies: Imagine being wrongfully convicted for a crime you didn’t commit, or imagine your child’s killer is still on the loose even though there’s enough evidence for an arrest. I want to help shine light on the injustices of our judicial system. I delve into court documents, attend trials, and interview those close to the case to help me tell their stories.

Criminology: a true crime podcast that takes a deep dive into some of the most famous cases in the annals of crime. Hosts Mike Ferguson and Mike Morford will give you every details of these infamous crimes. Each season is a new case told over 8-10 episodes.

Crime Culture: Hayley Langan and Kaitlin Mahar talk about true crime, pop culture, and how the two relate. You'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll wonder how the hell you got here. Episodes air every Tuesday!

Crime in color: Your weekly look at people of color in true crime hosted by Keyerra. I'm not only telling stories but also bringing light to cases. This podcast isn't only about murderers/serial killers, but it's also about victims, survivors who were able to make it through a terrible life changing event or the wrongfully convicted who had their lives ruined. All of these are important and I want to tell their stories.

Crime Junkie: A weekly podcast dedicated to giving you a true crime fix. Every Monday, Ashley Flowers will tell you about whatever crime she’s been obsessing over that week in a way that sounds like you're sitting around talking crime with your best friends. The storytelling is straightforward and free of rabbit holes so the cases stay suspenseful and are easy to follow. If you can never get enough true crime... Congratulations, you’re a Crime Junkie! You’ve found your people.

Crime in Sports: Two comedians take an unmerciful and hilarious look at athletes who have lost big games...with the law! Crime in Sports does the research, and finds the funny in the world of sports true crime. New episode every week!

Crimetown: Welcome to Crimetown, a series produced by Marc Smerling and Zac Stuart-Pontier in partnership with Gimlet Media. Each season, we investigate the culture of crime in a different city

Culpable: Culpable explores unsettled cases where the people who seem deserving of blame have somehow eluded justice.

Cults: Mystery. Manipulation. Murder. Cults are associated with all of these. But what really goes on inside a cult? More specifically, what goes on inside the minds of people who join cults and leaders who start them? Every Tuesday, Greg and Vanessa (co-hosts of the podcast Serial Killers) explore the history and psychology behind the most notorious cults. Cults is part of the Parcast Network and is a Cutler Media production.

Carruth: The "miracle" began Nov. 16, 1999, when Cherica Adams was shot four times in Charlotte, N.C. A hitman tried to murder Adams, the girlfriend of NFL star Rae Carruth, and their unborn son, Chancellor Lee. But the hitman failed. Now, a year-long investigation exposes stunning new details of the crime that shocked the sports world—and the impacts still being felt years later. Hosted by Charlotte Observer reporter Scott Fowler, who has covered this saga for 19 years.

Dark Poutine: True crime, legends, folklore, dark history and other creepy topics from the perspective of real live Canadians.

Dirty John: Dirty John is an investigative journalism podcast hosted by journalist Christopher Goffard and created by Wondery and Los Angeles Times.

Disgraceland: A true crime podcast about musicians getting away with murder and behaving very badly. Thirty minute episodes that trace the most insane criminal stories surrounding our most interesting and infamous pop stars.

Dr. Death: We’re at our most vulnerable when we go to our doctors. We trust the person at the other end of that scalpel. We trust the hospital. We trust the system.Christopher Duntsch was a neurosurgeon who radiated confidence. He claimed he was the best in Dallas. If you had back pain, and had tried everything else, Dr. Duntsch could give you the spine surgery that would take your pain away.But soon his patients started to experience complications, and the system failed to protect them. Which begs the question: who - or what - is that system meant to protect?

The Fall Line: The Fall Line Podcast is a true-crime audio serial focused on marginalized communities in Georgia, and covers one story per season. Sometimes we investigate, sometimes we reveal--but we're always telling stories of people who have been passed over by mainstream media

Female Criminals: The true crime podcast where women aren’t just the victims. Every week, we examine the psychology, motivations, and atrocities of female felons.

Fruitloops - Serial Killers of Color: a weekly podcast where two true crime enthusiasts bring you stories about people of color who rarely get media coverage - bringing diversity to the true crime conversation.

Generation Why: Two friends, Aaron & Justin, discuss theories and share their opinions on unsolved murders

Gone: Have you ever spent hours looking for something you simply lost? How about a hundred years? How about looking for a missing airplane?  Or a vanished civilization? Every other Monday, Gone searches for everything lost. From D. B. Cooper to the Holy Grail, the Etruscan language to early Russian cosmonauts; if it disappeared, we’re looking. After all, just because something is gone, doesn’t mean it can’t be found.

Court Junkies: Imagine being wrongfully convicted for a crime you didn’t commit, or imagine your child’s killer is still on the loose even though there’s enough evidence for an arrest. I want to help shine light on the injustices of our judicial system. I delve into court documents, attend trials, and interview those close to the case to help me tell their stories.

Criminal: Stories of people who’ve done wrong, been wronged, or gotten caught somewhere in the middle.

DETROIT: “Murder City” Podcast: Seven the General & friends share funny Prison stories as well as Real Life issues surrounding incarceration & its effects on the black communities

Hell and High Horror Podcast: Hosts Austyn and Repy are two average young women who are casually obsessed with true crime and horror. Every week a topic is chosen and each host presents a story of murder, mystery, or the paranormal along with some comic relief and banter.

Hollywood & Crime: Docu-drama about the Black Dahlia murder in 1947 - and a dozen other murders happening at the same time in suspiciously similar circumstances …

Hostage: Some terrorists use weapons. Some use information. The scariest use hostages. Every Thursday, Hostage tells electrifying crime stories culminating in intense, life-or-death negotiations. Within the stories, we examine tactics used by the FBI’s crisis negotiation unit, world governments, and even hostage’s parents, highlighting the techniques that saved lives, and the moments where everything went tragically wrong.

In the dark: Reporter Madeleine Baran examines the case of Curtis Flowers, who has been tried six times for the same crime. For 21 years, Flowers has maintained his innocence. He's won appeal after appeal, but every time, the prosecutor just tries the case again. In the Dark is an investigative podcast from APM Reports. Season One focused on the abduction of Jacob Wetterling.

It's About Damn Crime: Tired of hearing the same old true crime stories? Then you've come to the right place! Welcome to It's About Damn Crime. A true crime podcast where co-hosts Brittney and Justine discuss true crime cases featuring people of color. So please give it a listen. Promise some of these cases will be brand new to you!

Killer Queens:Two sisters get together to discuss a different case straight from the headlines or news feed. If you like to hear 90's lingo, obscure quotes, and the occasional (perhaps frequent) curse word in your true crime stories, then this is the show for you. TTYL.

Kingpins: Undeniable power. Unbelievable stories. Unlikely origins. Kingpins follows the rise and fall of rulers of the underworld. Every Friday, we examine the leaders of organized crime rings, and how money and power corrupted and changed their communities. What makes a kingpin or queenpin, and how can we stop them?

Last Podcast on the left: covers all the horrors our world has to offer both imagined and real, from demons and slashers to cults and serial killers

Let's Not Meet: These are stories of real encounters with creeps, murderers and psychos. Told in the form of a campfire narrative, Let's Not Meet sets out to prove that real monsters are not that of fiction novels or horror films. The real monsters are the humans that walk among us every day of our lives.

Let’s Read: The Lets Read Podcast centers around narrating True Scary Experiences from real people, just like yourself. Ranging from creepy stalkers to paranormal encounters with the other side. My goal is to lull you into beautiful nightmares.

Lore: the frightening history behind common folklore

Man In The Window: The Golden State Killer : In Man in the Window, Paige St. John, a Pulitzer Prize winning investigative reporter has uncovered never before revealed details about the man who would eventually become one of California's most deadly serial killers. From Wondery and the LA Times comes a new series that traces his path of devastation through his victims' eyes.

Married to Murder: a true crime, comedy podcast and we cover cases where couples kill together or each other.

Martinis and Murder: Hosts Daryn Carp and John Thrasher chat about creepy crimes and mysterious murders...while mixing up martinis! Each fun new episode will focus on a new crime, the crazy details and of course the theories about how it all went down.

Misconduct: is a true crime podcast hosted by Colleen and Eileen (who also happen to be related). Each week we will be discussing the facts, the theories, and our opinions of resolved and unresolved crimes, wrongful convictions, and miscarriages of justice.

Missing: hosted by bestselling crime writer Tim Weaver. Over the course of an entire season, the show investigates the world of missing people – who disappears, why they disappear, the pressures of life on the run, and who tracks them down – and charts the progression of a missing persons search.

Missing and Murdered: Where is Cleo? Taken by child welfare workers in the 1970’s and adopted in the U.S., the young Cree girl’s family believes she was raped and murdered while hitchhiking back home to Saskatchewan. CBC news investigative reporter Connie Walker joins the search to find out what really happened to Cleo.

Missing Maura Murray: a true crime podcast about the mysterious disappearance of Maura Murray. Maura was a 21 year old college student in February of 2004 when she inexplicably drove three hours from her dorm in Amherst, Massachusetts to the White Mountains of New Hampshire and vanished.

Moms and Murder: a true crime podcast featuring two friends gabbing about their favorite guilty pleasure, true crime.

Morbid: It’s a lighthearted nightmare in here, weirdos! Morbid is a true crime, creepy history and all things spooky podcast hosted by an autopsy technician and a hairstylist.

Murder Down Under: Two dorks, one continent, and a whole lot of slaughter

The Murder In My Family: Murder is a crime of many victims. It affects not only the murdered, but also those who loved them. The Murder in My Family tells the effects of murder from the perspective of the family members of the victims... 

Murder Was The Case: Criminologist Lee Mellor discusses the darkest, most perverse, bestial crimes known to man. You can’t handle it. Tap out now.

Murderous Minors: A true crime podcast bringing tales of killer kids. Factual stories of murderous children throughout the years- a parent’s worst nightmare. 

My Father the Murderer: Just how much of the story of ‘how you came to be’ makes up who you are? It's not a question most people think about, but for journalist, Nina Young, it's a question she can't avoid because she might not be here today if a woman hadn’t lost her life late one night in the bush in 1977. In this six-part podcast, she's going to finally let the skeletons out of her family closet and find out the truth. A truth that will take her back to the scene of the crime and face to face with some uncomfortable truths.

My Favorite Murder: Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark, two lifelong fans of true crime stories. Each episode the girls tell each other their favorite tales of murder, and hear hometown crime stories from friends and fans.

Mystery Murdery Thingy: Do you like Mystery? Murder? Thingies??? Mario and Chloe are making a podcast for people like you!

The mysterious Mr. Epstein:  We now know that Jeffrey Epstein was a sexual predator. He was also accused of fraud, embezzlement, coercion and more. But for most of his life, he was a mystery to the public, and to many of the people who knew him. In this six part series, we peel back the layers of Epstein’s life to detail his financial and sexual crimes, and his network of enablers, with original reporting and interviews.

Nothing Rhymes With Murder: Join Kate and Georgie on a global journey of MURDER. Every week a new country and true crime gem as well as fun hotspots to visit. Remember kids, life is a journey, don’t let murder stop you! ✈️??

Once Upon A Crime: THE podcast for the true crime addict. True crime stories are told chapter by chapter - kidnappings, murders, mysterious disappearances, serial killers, celebrity crime and more.

Overkill: After 19-year-old Aya Velasquez died mysteriously in Harding Park, no one seemed to care. At least not until a preteen medium accidentally summoned Aya herself to solve the mystery. With no memory of her death and no shortage of questions, Aya must make friends with her fellow ghosts and discover the truth behind the Midwest’s most haunted park. Based on EVP audio recorded by M.A.A.G. (Mothers Against Aliens and Ghosts), Overkill is a comedy podcast, a murder mystery, and a love story all wrapped in one vaguely supernatural package.

Pretty Scary: True crime, conspiracy theories, ghosts, aliens, and things of that sort. Hosted by comics Adam Tod Brown, Caitlin Cutt, and Kari Martin.

The Pros & Cons: Hosted by veteran true crime television producers, Bethany Jones and Adriana Padilla (formerly of the Queens of Crime Podcast), The Pros & Cons is the ultimate insider look into the world of true crime with insight from the pros and cons that actually lived the cases.

Real Crime Profile: Join Jim Clemente (former FBI profiler), Laura Richards (criminal behavioral analyst, former New Scotland Yard) and Lisa Zambetti (Casting director for CBS' Criminal Minds) as they profile behavior from real criminal cases.

The RFK Tapes: When Robert F. Kennedy was assassinated in 1968, a lone gunman was captured at the scene, revolver in hand. It seemed like an open and shut case. So why did the police keep evidence hidden away for decades? Over ten episodes, hosts Zac Stuart-Pontier (Crimetown) and Bill Klaber (author, Shadow Play) comb through previously secret police tapes and track down the people who were there to investigate troubling questions about one of the most significant crimes in American history.

S'laughter: True Crime Podcast: A UK true crime podcast with a comedy twist. 30 somethings Lucy and Emma tell each other true crime stories, whilst injecting a little dark humour along the way. Nominated in the true crime category in the British Podcast Awards 2018. Lucy and Emma pride themselves on being well researched and telling you everything there is to know about the crime in question. So listen, enjoy, and remember, listening to S'laughter doesn't make you a psycho, killing people does.

S-Town - a podcast from Serial and This American Life, hosted by Brian Reed, about a man named John who despises his Alabama town and decides to do something about it. He asks Brian to investigate the son of a wealthy family who's allegedly been bragging that he got away with murder. But when someone else ends up dead, the search for the truth leads to a nasty feud, a hunt for hidden treasure, and an unearthing of the mysteries of one man's life.

Serial: The podcast everyone’s already heard of. Serial tells one story—a true story—over the course of a season.

Serial Killers: Every Monday, Serial Killers takes a psychological and entertaining approach to provide a rare glimpse into the mind, methods and madness of the most notorious serial killers with the hopes of better understanding their psychological profile. With the help of real recordings and voice actors, we delve deep into their lives and stories.

Slow Burn: On Slow Burn, Leon Neyfakh excavates the strange subplots and forgotten characters of recent political history—and finds surprising parallels to the present. Season 1 captured what it was like to live through Watergate; Season 2 does the same with the saga of Bill Clinton’s impeachment.

Snap Judgment: If you like highly-produced storytelling, then this show is for you. Snap Judgment covers a variety of topics every week that explores the human condition. They’re currently covering stories about true crime, such as Marina Nemat’s remarkable story of being imprisoned in Tehran as a teenager and the unlikely ally she found inside.

Small Town Murder: Two comedians look at a small town, what makes it tick, and a murder that took place there. In depth research, horrible tragedy, and the hosts' comedic spin on the whole thing. New episodes every Thursday!!

Someone Knows Something: A series produced by CBC that examines unsolved cases of missing or murdered individuals.

Something Scary: Do you wanna hear something scary? Join Sapphire and Markeia every week as they bring you the creepiest ghost stories, urban legends, and folktales.

Southern Fried True Crime: Erica Kelley is a native Tennessean exploring historical and contemporary true crime in the South. Southern charm is attempted but southern sass is bountiful. Join her as she shows you just how southern fried the justice system can be in the Deep South.

The Strange and Unusual Podcast: The unknown, it lies at the root of all fear, and has inspired legends, folklore, superstition, mythology, and even murder throughout history. Still today we feel the shadowy presence of our ancestors' struggles to explain the mysterious in our lives, as we continue to keep fighting to keep our monsters in the dark. Welcome to The Strange and Unusual Podcast, a podcast with a focus on dark history.

Stranglers: True crime podcast retracing the Boston murders of 13 women during the 1960’s.  

Sword and Scale: Podcast covers the ugly underbelly of true crime. Be prepared to never sleep again…

Taboo, Schadenfreude and Murder: Welcome to Taboo, Schadenfreude, and Murder. A podcast by two sisters that will cover all manner of taboo subjects: some illegal, some immoral, some societal. We bring a surface level discussion to the world’s taboos.

The Teacher’s Pet: Lyn and Chris Dawson appear to have the perfect marriage. He's a star footballer and popular high school teacher. She's a devoted wife and mother. They share a beautiful home above Sydney's northern beaches. But when Lyn goes missing, dark secrets are buried. This is no fairytale, but a sordid story of strangely close twin brothers, teenage student lovers, and probable murder. The Australian's Hedley Thomas digs deep into a cold case which has been unsolved for 36 years, uncovering startling new evidence.

They Walk Among Us: They Walk Among Us is an award-winning weekly UK true crime podcast covering a broad range of cases from the sinister to the surreal.

Thin Air Podcast: Two English majors investigate cold cases by examining evidence and interviewing people involved with the original investigation.

The Thing about Pam: Two days after Christmas, 2011, Russ Faria came home from game night to find his wife, Betsy, dead. He was soon charged and convicted of her murder. But Russ Faria insisted he did not kill his wife. Betsy’s brutal murder set off a chain of events that would leave one man dead, another man implicated, and expose a diabolical scheme.

Thinking Sideways: Investigating things we simply don’t have the answer to. Sometimes you have to think a little sideways to come up with a plausible solution to the mystery.

The Trail Went Cold: a true crime podcast where writer Robin Warder examines unsolved mysteries and offers his own theories as to what really happened.

True Crime Addict –  Investigative journalist, James Renner, tackles the cold case of Maura Murray while coming to grips on his own downward spiral.

True Crime All The Time: This is a true crime podcast that spares none of the details and delves into what makes these killers tick. Join us for a good mix of lesser known cases as well as our take on what we call the "Big Timers". We don't take ourselves too seriously but we take true crime very seriously.

True Crime Brewery: Jill and Dick are a married couple who love to drink beer and discuss true crime. Join them at the quiet end of the bar. Dick will bring along an excellent beer from the region where the crime occurred. He will give us a little beer lesson and review before Jill starts off their true crime discussion. The discussions are well-researched and in depth. Dick is a physician and often shares his medical expertise at Jill's urging.

True Crime Fan Club: A podcast for the ultimate true crime enthusiast. A glimpse into the life and crimes of some of the most demented minds. You will not want to miss an episode.

True Crime Garage: Each week Nic & The Captain get in the garage and talk true crime and drink beer.

True Crime Historian: remembers the famous and forgotten scandals, scoundrels, and scourges of the past through newspaper accounts in the golden age of yellow journalism.

True Crime Japan Podcast: A podcast devoted to true crime and mysteries from Japan.

True crime Obsessed: Recapping True Crime Documentaries with Humor, Sass, and a well timed Garbage Bell

True Crime Sweden: True Crimes from Sweden, told in English!

True Murder: Penned as the podcast about “the most shocking killers in true crime history and the authors that have written about them,” journalist Dan Zupansky interviews those who are the most obsessed with criminal cases: true crime writers. Less produced but still engaging, True Murder covers some of the most brutal moments of criminal history, like the gruesome story of Theresa Cross, the mother who slowly killed two of her children, with the youngest daughter barely making it out alive.

Twisted Philly: There’s more mischief, mayhem and nefarious goings on in the city of Brotherly Love and Sisterly Affection than Billy Penn could have ever imagined.

UK True Crime Podcast: We examine lesser known UK cases in depth, talk to true crime authors, review products/shows and interview other experts in the field of UK True Crime to offer you the very best insight and analysis.

Unravel: Unravel True Crime is a podcast where, each season, some of Australia's best journalists investigate unsolved crimes.

Undisclosed: The Undisclosed podcast investigates wrongful convictions, and the U.S. criminal justice system, by taking a closer look at the perpetration of a crime, its investigation, the trial, and ultimate verdict... and finding new evidence that never made it to court.

Up and Vanished: Up and Vanished is an investigative journalism podcast hosted by Payne Lindsey. The series takes an in-depth look into the cases of people who have gone missing. The show is produced by Tenderfoot TV.

Unsolved Murders: True Crime Stories: Highly immersive true crime podcast that sometimes feels more like a old time-y audio drama.

The Vanished: Covering missing persons, one episode at a time.

Why Women Kill:  When a woman commits murder, she’s often given a label: “The Woman Who Snapped,” “Black Widow” or “Angel of Death.” Do these labels help us explain why women murder, or do they mask the truth? Join the true crime writer Tori Telfer as she uncovers what drives women to kill, presented by CBS All Access.

Wine and Crime: Wine & Crime is a new true crime / comedy podcast. Join three childhood friends as they chug wine, chat true crime, and unleash their worst Minnesota accents!

The Wonderland Murders: the tale of a violent home invasion robbery and the revenge rampage that followed. It involves a drug-fueled gang of criminals, a crazed crime kingpin– and the world’s most famous porn star on a downward and deadly spiral.

You Must Remember This: All about “the secret and/or forgotten history of Hollywood’s first century”; not a true crime podcast, but due to the nature of Hollywood’s first century, there is quite a lot of crime in it, like the Black Dahlia case, or a whole season about Charles Manson!

Zealot: A podcast about cults.

[rileygoldsteins]

i’ve literally copy and pasted my app and that’s the best i can do RN!!! pls skip to the second section if you just want to get her personality + feel with judaism ( though, there’s a lot of that in the bio too ) but !!! i’ve love to plot even though riley can def be a muse who your muse hasn’t talked to because she is pretty to herself and antisocial so if you’d like to go with that let me know!! IM JINX i also play rose!!!

❝ In my mind I am eloquent; I can climb intricate scaffolds of words to reach the highest cathedral ceilings and paint my thoughts. But when I open my mouth, everything collapses.❞ Riley Goldstein, Margaret Qualley, Almost Eighteen ( Virgo Queen! ), Seventh Year, Hufflepuff, Cis-Female, Halfblood, She/Her

PINTREST: [ x ]

BIOGRAPHY:  ( parental abandonment, mentions of drugs and alcohol. )

When you meet Riley Goldstein, a picturesque childhood in a picturesque suburbia in Virginia is not what you would expect and yet it was exactly what she had. Born on the cusp of summer and fall, Rachel and Christopher were over the moon to have their daughter, Riley Hayes, born on August 28, 2000. Finally, a child to complete the perfect family unit. Maybethey had hoped for a boy despite what science said ( hence the name Riley & a full name for a boy they had prepared ) but, they had a daughter and for the first ten years of her life they pampered her greatly. Trips to the coast every summer to visit his side of the family where Riley was praised for being such a pretty, good girl, and what seemed like infinite love from her father was doled out as long as she was what hewanted her to be. The younger girl was cooperative, it was in her nature it seemed, because she loved seeing her parents happy with each other. As long as Riley stayed within the lines, stayed within Christopher’s lines at least, everything would be well. Even when Riley started to develop a few habits and interests that were off the wall, he brushed them aside as childhood obsessions. Never could he accept his family for what they were which is exactly why he left.

The ugly truth was, Riley was an accident and the picture painted had been a lie – not that Riley knew until then. While she knew they had gotten married young she’d never known how much exactly her mother had given up to be with her father. Rachel Hayes had left her family, forsaken her religion ( as Christopher was a very religious Christian man ), the semi famous Goldstein Wizarding name, and moved down south into this suburbia all with the promise of a family. The biggest thing? Magic. When Christopher left a year before Riley entered school, Riley was forced to grow up and pick up the pieces of a broken lost woman who simply couldn’t find herself in the rubble that was the aftermath of her father leaving. But finding out she was an accident was the least of her worries. No matter how much poetry she wrote trying to figure out her mind, oftentimes thinking she was losing it, something within her was different, something within her felt different.

It took a few months to coax the why from her mother, and truly she was her caretaker. It wasn’t until her 10th birthday when she got the letter from Ilvermony that she realized what exactly was off. When she confronted her mother – her mother just poured everything out to her. Who Riley was, who her family was, what she was doing with her life before she met Christopher. At first, Riley couldn’t believe it – – she’d grown up hiding comics under her bed, hiding anything about the supernatural away. Even if her whole life she had felt a weird pull to these people who didn’t belong in her comics, these freaks, she never in her wildest dreams thought she’d have something in common with them. It all made sense though, and finally the pieces of her life started to come together. Riley knew what she had to do, so at the age of 10, she went with her mother to Wizarding NYC to try to find out more. To try to find the family her mother left behind.

After that, everything fell into place – her family was beyond accepting, even if they gave her shit, more than she’d ever known from her dad’s family and her mom started to get better as she become more true to herself. The family reconciled, helping Riley and Rachel move into a flat in NYC, in Chinatown. Rachel got a job at the ministry as an assistant and with the help of some family members and Riley started to prepare for school Wizarding School. She’d never been more happy in her life. New York City was her home, more than her podunk shitty town ever had, and she felt a freedom that made her wander the city, she felt a freedom to finally be herself. The only issue then? Riley wanted to go to a school far away from everything, because even if New York was her home, she needed to a break from being in the states. A break from all these people who knew who her family was & really, a place that was her own to find her own in the world. Easily, she picked Hogwarts and was delighted when they accepted her no matter how far she was. Hufflepuff was the perfect house for her, even if she wasn’t the most conventional or stereotypical kind of one.

For years, she pushed away a lot of the pain she felt – she figured her pain was her own, it was selfish of her to dwell on it or even think about it when she had this new fantastic life. Only in her poetry would she divulge her feelings, only her poetry knew that she felt inexplicably lost in the world the more she saw it. Around her 14th birthday, she met two boys in school who were a bit older than her but the twins ended up being her half-brothers – as they found they shared a father. A scumbag father who’d also been horrible to them. It was then that Riley wanted to distance herself from her father even more, fiercely signing and writing her last name as Hayes-Goldstein or just Goldstein when she could get away with it.

The thing was, the reminder of her father, the reminder that he was out there ruining more people’s lives, that he was out there spawning more children really intensely messed with Riley’s head. Why wasn’t she good enough for him to stay? Why couldn’t they have been enough? It was stupid, but the thoughts started to consume her and the lost feeling just got bigger. Picking up vices like smoking, smoking pot, drinking beer like she was her own father after a long day of work, anything to escape the feeling that she didn’t really have a place in this world. Not one she could see. What was she even going to do with her life after school? What did she have to offer the world? A loneliness she could not shake slept with her at night like any blanket did, every day felt like she was smothered. Every day there was a new realization that she didn’t know what the hell she wanted to do with her life, and that she didn’t really have a place in the world. Having the family members she does in New York is comforting, but, there’s still a feeling of not quite belonging – no matter how much she loves them.

II. PERSONALITY.

CHARACTER PARALLELS: Daria ( Daria ), Seth Cohen ( The OC ), Veronica Sawyer ( Heathers ), Ron Swanson/Ben Wyatt ( Parks & Rec ), Quentin Coldwater ( The Magicians ),Pam Beasley ( The Office ), Zari Tomaz ( Legends of Tomorrow )

LIKES & INTERESTS: Cult Classics - Movies ( Heathers, Dead Poets Society, Sixteen Candles, Ferris Buellers Day Off, Cruel Intentions, The Breakfast Club, Almost Famous ), Blue raspberry Slushies, Donuts, Judaism, Arctic Monkeys, Lana Del Rey, The Strokes, The Smiths, the color blue, writing poetry, e. e. cummings, art museums, greek mythology, rmemes, exchanging memes with Sahar, Rolling joints on her favorite books, biblical mythology, astronomy, astrology ( she finds it very entertaining in a mocking way and would never admit there’s a small part of her that enjoys it ), Star Wars, black cats, black cats named Boggart, black nail polish, tattoos, carnivals, comic books, ferris wheels, puns, the sea, jellyfish, NPR every morning, going to the beach at twilight, 4 am drives, 5am runs, spliff.

POSITIVE TRAITS: Observant, Cooperative, Strategic, Witty, Intelligent, Resilient, Morally Responsible, Loyal.

NEGATIVE TRAITS: Reserved, Pessimistic, Sardonic, Secretive, Curious ( it will get her into trouble ), Awkward, Suspicious.

III. HISTORY / CONNECTION WITH JUDAISM. 

Judaism was once a rarely talked about religion in the Hayes house, in fact, Riley knew barely anything about the religion at all. If she had realized it was taboo instead, it would’ve been something she would’ve dipped her mind into much earlier. The Hayes family were church goers, Sundays, Easter, Christmas, that was the religious practice they followed and had been since Rachel Hayes had forgone her roots in Judaism. Once she married & became Mrs. Christopher Hayes, she lost the part of her that made herher,that connected her to her family, all because of a pregnancy that was unplanned, and a marriage that needed to happen in result of it.

Once Christopher left, Riley dug up old numbers, old things, anything she could find that would bring her mother back to herself. Here, the woman gave so much of herself to her father and Riley felt she needed to get some of her back. Anything would do, anything at all. When Riley found an old Siddur, stuffed in the back of her mother’s side of the closet, she had a pretty good idea of a way to start.

It started with looking at temples in NYC when they finally moved. All the two did was walk around, taking in the city itself. Taking in the fact that there were even so many people in one place as opposed to small town Virginia where they lived. Taking in people coming back synagogue, the dress, and while it was painful at first for her mom, Rachel slowly started to explain to Riley different things, different details about Judaism. Soon, Riley and Rachel learned together and go at least once a month for Saturday evening services as well as for most High Holidays. From then on, the rest of the Goldstein family also invited them to family event after event, Passover, Rosh Hashanah, Hannukah gatherings.  

Riley’s favorite Jewish holiday is Yom Kippur: the day of Atonement. While she knows she had absolutely no control over being born, she does feel she has a lot to atone for. A lot to cleanse from her soul. A lot of regrets, a lot of guilt for the things she’d done and the people she’s not been able to become. Like a failure, failing her family, failing their legacy. Her poetry may be fair game – it’s raw, it’s unforgiving and it’s brutal – to herself & to others. For being what she is, for being something else other than human and purposefully standing by while others cause havoc – she feels she needs to cleanse & atone for that. It’s the day that she for once feels clean, cleansed and not like the figure from Greek mythology: Atlas.

Is your character involved in any summer programs? Do you wish for your character to be a Prefect, Head Student, or a member of the Quidditch team?:

Truthfully, Riley has no clue what she wants to do with her life but she knew that she’d have to do something over the summer for her mother to allow her to stay there for the majority of it. So, after not getting into three of the departments under the Shacklebolt Internship Program, Riley submitted her writing and a desperate application to Obscurus Books Publishing and got a small internship there. She also works in an extension of her cousin Sahar’s great grandfather’s bakery in Diagon Alley.

[therealkn]

David’s Resolution: Day -2

Day -2 (December 30, 2018)

The Night of the Hunter (1955)

“And then the good Lord went on to say, ‘Beware of false prophets which come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly, they are ravening wolves. Ye shall know them by their fruits. A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit. Neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit. Wherefore by their fruits, ye shall know them.’”

There have been plenty of actors who’ve tried their hand at directing films, with varying degrees of success. A big example is Ron Howard, who started out acting in The Andy Griffith Show and Happy Days, then went on to become an accomplished filmmaker with a lot of good films like Apollo 13 and A Beautiful Mind. Clint Eastwood’s had a pretty solid career as a director, with films like Unforgiven and Million Dollar Baby. Same with Rob Reiner, who went from being known as Michael “Meathead” Stivic on All in the Family to being known as the director of This is Spinal Tap, The Princess Bride and Misery (and also North, much as we’d like to forget that film exists).

Mel Gibson took on directing Braveheart himself, and that film was also a big success commercially and critically (also has a great soundtrack by James Horner); same thing with Tom Hanks and That Thing You Do!. But not every actor who goes into directing met big success, at least initially, and one such example is Charles Laughton.

Charles Laughton was a great actor whose more memorable roles include William Porterhouse in 1932′s The Old Dark House, Dr. Moreau in 1932′s Island of Lost Souls (a really good old horror movie where he is the best thing in it), and Quasimodo in the 1939 adaptation of The Hunchback of Notre Dame, which portrayed Claude Frollo as a judge over 50 years before Disney’s animated adaptation of the story. He was a fantastic actor who sadly directed only one film, but at least the film he made is fucking incredible and one of the best thrillers of all time.

The Night of the Hunter is the story of one Rev. Harry Powell, played by Robert Mitchum. Powell is a traveling preacher who also happens to be a serial killer operating in the same vein as Bluebeard: he finds wealthy widows, marries them, kills them, takes their money, rinse, repeat. And his latest target is Willa Harper (played by Shelley Winters), a widow living in Depression-era rural West Virginia. Willa’s husband Ben (played by Peter Graves) was arrested, sent to prison, and executed for bank robbery and killing two men during the robbery, but it just so happens that Ben’s cellmate was Rev. Powell himself, who was serving time for car theft. And Powell learns that Ben, before his arrest, gave the money to his two children - his son John and his daughter Pearl - for them to hide, meaning that not only is Powell going to go after Willa, he’s going to go after her kids.

So after Powell is released from prison, he goes to Willa’s town and begins charming his way into the town and endearing himself to the townsfolk, which does two things. One is to show Robert Mitchum’s talents as an actor: he is legitimately charming and charismatic as he tells the now-famous story of why the words “hate” and “love” are tattooed on his knuckles, and he quickly endears himself to the town and to Willa and Pearl, even to the viewer in some degree. And that’s where the other thing comes in, and that is that it shows how goddamn terrifying Robert Mitchum can be.

I ended the It Happened One Night review saying “Robert Mitchum is a scary motherfucker”, and this movie shows why. There’s a reason the American Film Institute put Powell on their list of the 50 greatest movie villains of all time. The way Mitchum plays Powell is captivating not only in how charismatic he is, but also in how sinister he is. At all times, even when he’s singing hymns with the townsfolk at an outdoor picnic, there is always this sense that something doesn’t feel right. Even when he is played a little more for comedy, like when he’s peeking upside-down at Ben in prison like he’s Kilroy, or when he’s hollering like Daffy Duck after getting shot in the arm (we’ll get to that later), there’s still this feeling of unease around him. If anything, the fact he can be more comedic makes him scarier because it makes him feel more like an actual person. It makes him more grounded and fleshed out and all the more disturbing.

Powell soon marries Willa and kills her, but not before convincing her that she has been a wicked woman - their honeymoon is him making her feel ashamed for wanting sex in a marriage, and she soon adapts herself to her beliefs. This leads to what I feel is the most disturbing and terrifying scene in the movie, where Willa is preaching to the townsfolk about her “formerly wicked” ways, surrounded by torches as she preaches her rhetoric. It’s legitimately terrifying to see her indoctrinated into these beliefs and speaking these words in this way.

Willa dies at Powell’s hands, and it eventually leads to John and Pearl striking out on their own, travelling downriver to avoid the pursuing Powell. This eventually brings them to Rachel Cooper, an old woman played by Lillian Gish who takes care of stray children, and who takes them in to live with her. Rachel is established as a badass old lady who does have a very kind and understanding side. The film reaches its peak when Powell tracks the children to Rachel, who doesn’t buy his sob story about Willa’s death for one moment and, when Powell goes after John, immediately goes for her shotgun to force Powell off, leading into a tense nighttime standoff between the reverend and Rachel. And how it ends... yeah, not spoiling this one. You’ll have to see it for yourself.

Put simply, it’s really depressing that Laughton didn’t direct another film. This is one of those movies that took some time to be seen as a classic. When it first came out, it did not do very well with critics or audiences, and it really got to Laughton to where he didn’t direct another film. It sucks because I’d have loved to have seen him direct more films, because if The Night of the Hunter is anything to go by, he’d have given us more great classics like it. This makes me wonder if after his death, he saw the film’s reception even today and how so many see it as a classic.

All the acting in the film is great, from Mitchum and Gish and Winters to the child actors, even to the Spoons, an old couple who are friends with the Harper family and whom the wife Icey (yes, her name is Icey Spoon) I absolutely fucking hate as a character. That’s not a bad thing, I think she was designed to be a character you hate, and if that is the case then it’s done very well. The music by Walter Schumann is excellent at conveying mood, especially when things get dark. But then you get to the cinematography and the lighting, and that’s the really good shit.

That screenshot I used for the film is the perfect example of that. The use of lighting in this film is god-tier and there are few films before or since that have used light like The Night of the Hunter. The symbolism behind it is very simple - light and dark, good and evil - but it’s absolutely striking. There are shots that are beautiful to look at and haunting at the same time: the ethereal depiction of Willa’s body in her car at the bottom of the river, the whole thing framed like a painting; the shot of John and Pearl sleeping in a barn when John sees Powell on horseback in the distance, searching for the kids; and the scenes with John and Pearl floating downriver, with the night sky above and the animals watching on the ground. There’s some really beautiful imagery in the film and it’s worth watching just for that.

I highly recommend this movie. Just the cinematography and lightning’s enough to make you want to see this movie for how great it looks, but it’s also a top-notch thriller with one of cinema’s greatest and most terrifying villains. Also, this is the first movie that I’d recommend you watch in the dark, preferably in the evening or in the early morning before the sun rises.

Next time: a Joan of Arc film, but not the kind you’re thinking of.

[gadgetgirl71]

Top Ten Tuesday 6 October 2020

Welcome to this weeks Top Ten Tuesday. Originally created by The Broke & The Bookish, which is now hosted by Jana @ That Artsy Reader Girl. Each week it features a book or literary themed category. This weeks prompt is:

Book Covers with Autumn Colours/Vibes

Bitter Falls (Stillhouse Lake #4) by Rachel Caine

Synopsis:  She’s investigating a cold case no one else could—by going places no else would dare.

In spite of a harrowing past still haunting her, Gwen Proctor is trying to move forward. Until a new assignment gives her purpose: the cold-case disappearance of a young man in Tennessee. Three years missing, no clues. Just Ruth Landry, a tortured mother in limbo. Gwen understands what it’s like to worry about your children.

Gwen’s investigation unearths new suspects…and victims. As she follows each sinister lead, the implications of the mystery grow more disturbing. Because the closer Gwen gets, the closer she is to a threat that looms back home.

In a town that’s closed its ranks against Gwen; her partner, Sam; and her kids, there’s no bolder enemy than the Belldene family—paramilitary, criminal, powerful, and vengeful. As personal vendettas collide with Gwen’s investigation, she’s prepared to fight both battles. But is she prepared for the toll it could take on everyone she loves?

The Collection by G Edward Smith

Synopsis:  Flash Fiction and Short Stories that will confound, terrify, and leave you wondering what just happened. With twists and turns ready at every page to keep you guessing.

Reflect (Reclaim Trilogy #1) Jesse Booth & Joanna Reeder

Synopsis:  Their romance only lasted a short few months… but that was more than 100 years ago.

Ever since his fiancé, Gemma MacLugh, was killed at the hands of a dragon shifter, vampire Leif Villers has mourned his loss. Still, a part of him never gave up on her. He could hear her voice, feel her love even through the grave, relive her memories over and over until they were stripped from him.

Now Leif has discovered the final piece to bring her back from death’s clutches. He carried her brooch, never knowing it held the key to resurrecting his love.

Too bad it’s now in the hands of the formidable kraken shifter who nearly destroyed the Shifter Academy in the recent vampire/shifter war and then slithered away, never to be seen again.

Across time, powerful selkie Gemma MacLugh–a magic user who can shape-shift into a seal–should have a wonderful, comfortable existence at her home in New York in 1897. But jealous sisters target her with their cruelty, making life miserable. If not for her Grandmother and her best friend and fellow selkie, Frederick, things might have been truly unbearable.

But when a mermaid seer foretells her upcoming death and opportunity arises to leave her home and travel across the country to a boarding house in Washington, she takes it.

To get away from her cruel sisters.

To escape her destiny.

But is it luck or fate’s final joke when she meets a tall, dark and handsome man by the name of Leif Villers?

Their love will challenge time and death itself, but can Leif get Gemma back? Can Gemma truly escape her fate?

The Cookbook Collector by Allegra Goodman

Synopsis:  Everyone has secrets, but some can change your life forever…

In the midst of the Second World War, Eva receives the devastating news that her husband is missing and presumed dead. Neither wife nor widow, she lives in a numb state of limbo until, in the heat of an English summer, she meets Bill, a black American GI. Despite their vastly different backgrounds, neither can deny the love that overcomes them in the frantic weeks that follow, when every day could be their last.

After Eva discovers she’s pregnant, Bill is shipped off to join the D-day fight, leaving her alone in a bigoted world. As her mixed-race daughter, Louisa, grows up, how far will Eva go to keep her safe and bury the past? And how far will Louisa go to uncover the truth?

A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini

Synopsis:  The present novel “A Thousand Splendid Suns” is the author’s second novel that was published in 2007. It is primarily the story of two women, Mariam and Laila. Mariam happens to be an illegitimate child. She has to suffer from the stigma that surrounded her birth. Not only this, she has to endure abuse throughout her marriage. Laila, the other major character, is born a generation later. She has a privileged youth. Eventually, when their lives intersect, Laila’s fate also changes and she is compelled to accept a marriage proposal given by Mariam’s husband, Rasheed. It is a tale of displacement, attacks, beatings, torture, social injustice, and pitiable condition of women in the contemporary Afghan society.

River of Destiny by Barbara Erskine

Synopsis:  From the bestselling author of Time’s Legacy and Lady of Hay comes a thrilling new novel, River of Destiny, an epic story that spans Anglo Saxon Britain, Victorian Suffolk and the present day.

Perfect for fans of Kate Mosse’s Labyrinth.

An Anglo Saxon burial ground that must not be disturbed. A Victorian tragedy of forbidden love. And an ancient curse whose power grows ever stronger…

On the banks of the River Deben lies a set of barns dating back to the Anglo Saxons, and within their walls secrets have laid buried for centuries.

Zoe and Ken have just moved into one of the barns, ready to start a new life away from the hustle and bustle of the city. To the outside world they seem like an ordinary couple, but underneath they are growing ever more distant by the day. And the strange presence Zoe feels within their home, and the shapes she sees through the cloying mists on the river are getting harder to ignore.

Whilst farmers are ploughing the land surrounding them, human bones are found and when the police arrive it becomes clear that the remains are much older than first suspected… Are they linked to a Victorian tragedy the locals whisper about? And what should they make of the grassy mound which has remained untouched across many centuries, but has now been disturbed with seemingly devastating consequences?

The Conjuror’s Bird by Martin Davies

It seems a long time ago that Fitz and Gabby were together, with his work on extinct species about to make him world-famous. Now, it’s his career that is almost extinct. Suddenly, though, the beautiful Gabby reappears in his life. She wants his help in tracing the history of The Mysterious Bird of Ulieta, a creature once owned by the great 18th Century naturalist Joseph Banks. It soon becomes clear that Fitz is getting involved in something more complicated — and dangerous — than the search for a stuffed bird. To solve the puzzle, he must uncover the identity of the amazing woman Banks loved — a woman who has disappeared from history as effectively as the specimen he is hunting. A mixture of detection, romance and history.

The Lure of the Wolf (Shadowmen Series #1) by Jennifer St Giles

Mighty warriors sworn to protect humanity, the shape-shifters known as The Shadowmen move between two worlds. Now their dark leader has exiled himself from the spirit world, opening the door to the forces of chaos…and to the power of love.

Half wolf, half man, Aragon has abandoned his brethren to repay a debt of honor; he is sworn to kill a rogue Blood Hunter, though exacting revenge will doom him to a ghostly existence trapped between two worlds. But when a mortal woman unexpectedly calls him to her side, the heat of her soft flesh arouses a hunger in him that threatens to complicate his mission.

Dr. Annette Batista, a dedicated healer, is determined to find her missing sister. With the amulet found at the site of her sister’s disappearance, she unwittingly summons a shadowy warrior. She wonders if she can trust this powerful male named Aragon, who claims he can vanquish her sister’s captor — the very monster he’s vowed to destroy. Or is Annette blinded by her shocking passion for the most alluring, mysterious man she’s ever seen?

Divine by Blood by P C Cast

Synopsis:  Morrigan Christine Parker finds that turning 18 carries a heavy weight when you’re the only daughter of Rhiannon MacCallan, disgraced high priestess to the goddess Epona, in Cast’s down-home follow-up to 2006’s Divine by Choice. After Rhiannon betrayed Epona, the goddess bestowed her favor on Rhiannon’s look-alike, Shannon Parker. Rhiannon promised her allegiance to the evil god Pryderi, but recanted after Morrigan’s birth, giving the child over to Epona’s protection and the care of Shannon’s parents. Now Morrigan comes of age and learns more about her heritage from her adoptive grandparents and the wind-borne whispers of Pryderi and Epona. While visiting the Alabaster Caverns State Park and exploring her power over rocks and crystals, Morrigan is unexpectedly transported to the mystical realm of Partholon, where she must find Shannon and fulfill her destiny.

Forest Fire (The Legends of Regia #2) by Tenaya Jayne

Synopsis:  *Book 2 in The Legends of Regia series. Sequel to Forbidden Forest.* Banished to Earth. Hunted by the queen’s assassins. Forest must fight to find a way back to Regia. Lonely and brokenhearted, she waits for Syrus to break through her banishment. Syrus lives his days in anguish, trapped in a portal that goes nowhere. Separated by galaxies, Forest and Syrus’ spiritual connection strains to the breaking point.

As Regia’s civil war ravages the land and the balance of power tips, the world will learn it’s the Rune-dy pulling the strings. Forest must face the horrifying truth of her father’s identity and how her very existence is rooted in one of the Rune-dy’s darkest secrets.

Fighting to find her place in Regia’s new world order, Forest is desperate to keep her past hidden, while Leith threatens to taint her name forever. Forest must attain her freedom through retribution and wage war inside her very soul. Will she be able to accept the gift Syrus offers, or will one mistake separate them forever?

Until next Tuesday

#JustForFun, #Top Ten Tuesday, #TopTenTuesday, #TTT

[ebthblog]

A Picker's Guide to Round Top

By: Rhoda and Anna of Loot Rentals and Loot Finer Goods Austin, TX

Round Top, TX, population 91. It is surprising to many that this modest little town in the middle of central Texas half way between Austin and Houston is home to one of the finest antique markets in the world. This mecca of vintage and antiques from all over carries with it the most fascinating people, beautiful rolling hills, and a local culture and flavor all its own. We want to take you along Hwy 237 through the 20 miles worth of vendors to share tips on how to tackle Round Top, and why we love it so much.

Round Top is the town that started the festival with the  Original Round Top Antiques Fair , but now, after 50 years, the show extends through more towns along the stretch including Carmine, Warrenton, Fayetteville and La Grange. 

This year the official dates of the show are extended for a full three weeks instead of just two. September 15 through October 8. We're in the habit of catching the early part of the show to hopefully get the good picking, but mid and late are great too for a couple of reasons. Not all the vendors/shows have officially opened and the earlier you are there, the less bargaining power you have.  Be sure to check out Antique Weekend for a full list of all the shows and the dates they are open. All the vendors open up when they are ready and close when they are ready. To be safe, 10 AM - 5 PM is the best time for picking.

Lodging

We don't recommend just one day of shopping, so it is a good idea to make it an overnight trip. There are plenty of places to stay, but most are small boutique lodgings. Book early for the best selection! We've had the pleasure of staying in some pretty lovely places. Here are a few of our favorites: 

Elisa's Sunday Haus: awesome dogtrot construction with the sweetest people as hosts  

Hillcrest Inn: right smack in the middle of Warrenton and easy to walk to a lot of the tented vendors

Round Top Inn: walking distance to restaurants and serving up the best complimentary breakfast around

The Vintage Round Top: eye candy full of architecture and stellar interiors

Also in the area, The Prairie by Rachel Ashwell: the one and only person credited for starting the Shabby Chic movement. 

Photo Credit: TheVintageRoundTop.com

How to Dress: 

While out in the fields be sure to take layers because of the varying Texas temps, a good hat, sunscreen, and maybe even a handkerchief to shield from the dust. 

Where to Shop: 

We love to spend time in Northgate field for a little more global style, Ex-Cess and Ex-Cess II for European finds and eclectic, creative uses of vintage, The Compound for easy parking and serious eye candy, Bar W for lots of choices with a little bit of everything, and one of the newer venues, Market Hill, which has awesome vendors, air conditioning and nice restrooms. Other great shows include La Bahia and Blue Hills. We'd be remiss not to mention some great solo vendors along the trail like Box Road, Bill Moore's Antiques and Junk Gypsy World Headquarters (for a lot of Round Top fashion!). Every trip we make to Round Top allows us to visit a new vendor or field and we are NEVER disappointed with the result. A new discovery every time. 

Featured: Blue Hills

Featured: Eneby Home at The Compound |  Photo Credit: The Distillery Market

Where to Eat: 

In addition to layered clothing, you're going to need a great pair of walking shoes because you will be on your feet all. day. long. But don't worry, there are food and drink trucks everywhere you look, as well as super charming restaurants to sit and rest for a spell. We ALWAYS make it a point to stop at the Texas Rose Antique Show not only for some sweet vendor tents, but for the delicious food trailer on site. If you love a perfect rosemary chicken salad or pimiento cheese, this stop is calling your name. The portions are quite big, so share with a friend! It would also be a travesty if you didn't stop in at Henkel Square for the famous Royers Cafe. Lunch on lovely sandwiches and salads, but be sure to save room for their world famous pie. To finish out the evening and talk about your favorite finds of the day, enjoy the porch of Los Patrones for margaritas and Mexican food. We never miss this stop during our stay in Round Top.

Night Life: 

There are always festivities happening around these parts in the evenings. Vendors and locals are celebrating another successful day while visiting with friends they haven't seen since the last show. One of the more famous events is the Junk-O-Rama Prom. Don your favorite vintage prom dress or cowboy duds and head over to Zapp Hall for a great time under the Texas stars. Don't forget your boots!

Insider Tips: 

Some final tips to consider before hitting the fields. Cash speaks volumes, cell service is spotty, and taking a wheeled cart or large car to haul items is recommended. If it all seems a little overwhelming, which is completely understandable, you might look into a guided Round Top day trip with our friend, Catelyn Silapachai of The Distillery Market. After submitting a survey answering what you are in search for, Catelyn will dedicate her day to pampering you with the best shopping experience based on what you are seeking. She's a pro in the fields and will not disappoint with her savvy knowledge of all things Round Top. Tour includes guided shopping, negotiation + shipping assistance, morning coffee, lunch, and transportation. A great option for a first time Round Topper. 

We are looking forward to hitting the fields starting this weekend and will be posting on EBTH's Instagram feed with our finds and adventures along the way. We hope you come along for the journey!

XO,

Rhoda and Anna

[myreadingreality]

Secrets of a Celebrity Sex Club by Dakota Fox Genre: New Adult/Contemporary Romance http://amzn.to/2oo2tWC Hello and welcome to my world! My name is Dakota and like you, I have a desire for some good romance and it’s my personal experience that led me to put this series together. Picture Desperate Housewives meets Real Housewives, all wrapped up in The Lifestyles of the Rich & Famous. Sound good? Let me give you some background. I grew up in Las Vegas and now live in Los Angeles. Like so many, I had the big dream. I wanted to be in movies and I wanted to be famous. I was optimistic; a friend of mine, had a friend, who knew someone, and so on. I was all set and the plan seemed easy. All I had to do was be good at my job, meet celebrities, make contacts and make it big! My referral got me a job working in one of the most intimate places in Hollywood. I had an in and became a server and assistant in an elite and celebrity sex club known only to those wealthy and well-liked enough to have the honor. I was hired to serve guests and help make things comfortable; no, I do not indulge or partake in the goings on, that’s reserved for members only. It was an excellent opportunity and being a model back home, I felt like I was halfway to fame already! However, if you haven’t heard, Hollywood is not that easy. Day after day reality hit and before I knew it, it was year after year. I mean, I’m still a beauty, or so they tell me, but the reality is that today I’m not so optimistic that I’ll see my face on the big screen. It seems my opportunities for fame went out the window the closer I got to the secrets I was privy to. Instead of finding stardom, I found that people with wealth, status and popularity start to shy away from those who have seen too much. That would be me. And so I’ve taken my passion to the page and believe me, I have enough to fill it for years. These stories are all based on real people made up of celebrities and the Hollywood elite. People talk a lot and I am writing what I’ve come to know, filling in the blanks where I need to. I’ve seen what goes on behind-the-scenes in “tinsel town” for quite some time now; I’m talking about actors, singers, artists and even politicians. No athletes though, they weren’t allowed in the club. The members needed the financial background, integrity and intelligence to be let in and frankly, the athletes in general were a flat out risk. I’ve changed the club name and character names of course, and since I do not go home with these people you can expect my own dramatization there based on what I’ve learned. My intent here is not to be vindictive in any way and I am not trying to ruin lives or take down the latest on the A-list. No, I simply want to tell the truth while exploring my creativity. This series takes you into a steamy world, based on insider information and created with a bit of a twist. We have social elites in a luxury world, and a posh sex club with some big egos and fierce competition. The secrets begin with the lives of “Rachel, Harper, Sloane and Lexi” but with so many members over the years, there is so much more to tell. I invite you into their stories. Sloane Temple is the hot, blonde babe of the group. She’s all sunshine and personality, and more woman than most would even know what to do with. Behind the kinky fun and flaunting though, there is much more to Sloane than one could guess just by looking at her. Born and raised in California, she is married to Dylan and the two have made themselves known throughout California before landing in L.A. She gets roles here and there and his famed plastic surgery practice is growing by the minute. They love each other but their true passion is to be loved by others, and admired. Episode One takes you inside this exclusive world of extravagant money, power and the erotic life of the club. Rachel and her very special group of close friends are the high-class main event. In their luxurious and limitless lifestyles of fame and money, they strive to maintain their position as an elite group of high-powered and very sexual social Dakota moved to L.A. with the same big dreams as many Hollywood hopefuls do. What she found may not have been a position on the A-list, but what she did find was much more interesting. She is an artist of sorts spending her time writing and taking pictures, when she is not working at "the club". In the Celebrity Secrets series, Dakota brings her wit and creativity to the page to tell the true stories of what goes on in the secret and erotic world of the stars. Please also visit me at: https://www.facebook.com/Dakotafoxstories/

[acuppellarp]

We’re excited to announce that Leigh has decided to level up Sage LeBlanc from a mumu minor character to a main character! Please go through the checklist to make sure you’re ready to go and send in your account within the next 24 hours.

OOC INFO

Name + pronouns: Leigh, she/her Age: 27 Timezone: EST Ships: Sage/Chemistry Anti-Ships: Sage/Forced

IC INFO

Full Name: Alessandra Sage “Sage” LeBlanc Face Claim: Vanessa Morgan Age/Birthday: 27/November 1 Occupation: Crime analyst for the NYPD Personality: Blunt, nihilistic, frigid, whip-smart, irritable Hometown: New Orleans, Louisiana Bio:

From the time she was born, Alessandra LeBlanc was too smart for her own good. As the younger of the LeBlanc sisters, Alessandra couldn’t have asked for a better childhood. While she grew up in a rural part of Louisana, her father was a famous jazz musician and moved the family to New Orleans when his band started catching a big break.

Alessandra loved living in New Orleans. There was so much culture, history, and folklore surrounding the town that she couldn’t help but get swept up in it. She would listen to stories about voodoo, Marie Laveau, ghost hunting, and of the incredible food. She and her sister, Alison, took the most pleasure in roaming the streets in the afternoons, listening to music pour out of the restaurants on Bourbon Street. Mardi Gras was a party that resulted in their mother cooking and baking up a storm.

Family was everything to Alessandra. First, her mother Rebecca, a wise and kind woman with soft eyes and an even softer heart, who worked as a cleaning woman in the local hotel. But she could bake, and she could play the piano. She’d often play the piano for Shaw, the patriarch of the household, who was a wizard on the tenor saxophone, and whose career in music was supposed to drive them from the slums to easy street. Then there was Alison, who embodied all of the best possible qualities of both parents. She was every bit of the perfect older sister to Alessandra– the guardian, the protector. They were happy, and family always came first.

Tragedy struck Alessandra over the course of two years, one after the other. Alessandra never saw either of them coming, but shortly after she turned twelve years old, she and her parents buried her fifteen year old sister after a terminal illness caught too late, to the point where nothing more could be done. Alessandra felt so lost in the world after that, and it’s where she started to flounder. Her dad stopped playing jazz. Her mom started resorting to take out. The streets of New Orleans had lost its magic, but the family wouldn’t be there for much longer.

When Katrina hit, Alessandra was in eighth grade, and her parents made the wise decision to move away from Louisana and into lower New York State, instead. Alessandra’s mother had family in the greater New York area, and it seemed like a good decision at the time. This was when she started going by Sage instead– new life, new name, right? Any hope of making something new for herself faded away. Unfortunately, they moved into a community where children had been friends since they were in diapers, and a sullen, moody, pink-haired child wasn’t exactly on the top of everyone’s list to be friends with.

Between Alison’s passing and being displaced from her home, Sage never quite bounced back from the charismatic, know-it-all that she once was. No more would she run up to her teachers and ask if they wanted to hear about a math proof, or a fun fact. She kept to herself and lost herself in a world of books. Other people’s stories distracted her from her own, and she was found getting in trouble in class for reading books when she should have been paying attention. Even when Sage would be randomly called on, she could always come up with the right answer. Sage had the curse of being smart and being bored.

This was why nobody was even remotely surprised when Sage graduated as the valedictorian of her class, with a full-ride scholarship to Columbia University. She majored in Criminal Studies with a minor in Women’s Literature. Part of Sage wanted to go ahead and pursue a law degree, but people aren’t really her thing. She’s much better off behind the scenes, analyzing data and helping to solve crimes in that manner.

Sage is heavy– mentally, emotionally. She isn’t friendly, and she isn’t kind. She’s not like her mother and never learned enough from her sister on how to face the world with a smile. Instead, Sage relies on her ability to push people away in order to get by. One might think that she wouldn’t thrive in an environment like Acuppella Cafe, because it is a place that thrives on community and togetherness. The cafe has given Sage just that– a community of people who understand her (and plenty of those who don’t) as well as some of her best friends in New York City.

Pets: An adopted Bengal cat named Nefertari. Sage is convinced that this cat is a reincarnation of the famed Egypitan queen. She’ll bend over backwards to tell you that, too.

Relationships:

Haley Sterling

Roommate. Sage can’t stand her, if she’s being completely honest, because Haley is far too peppy and happy for her own good. Sage thinks she’s a six year old child trapped in an adult body, and she has no patience for it. Sage tries to avoid her roommate as much as humanly possible.

Scout Solano

While these two don’t seem to have much in common on the surface, they’ve fallen into a benefits situation. Calling them friends might be a bit far. Sage thinks Scout is absolutely gorgeous and has no trouble admitting that, but she’d much prefer Scout with her mouth shut. Or occupied.

Dani Harper

Unlikely best friends, and it’s a well-known that Sage would do anything for Dani and vice versa. Sage adores Dani’s vibe and finds it easy to be around her. Even though she’d state otherwise while under oath, Sage considers Dani to be her lifeline.

Rachel Berry

Sage and Rachel bonded over having similar diets, and woefully looking inside the Acup pastry case. The two will often go out to lunch together and share their exercise habits and dietary tips.

EXTRA INFO

your worst nightmare/queensageoftheunderworld/i take hot showers to practice burning in hell:

Five latest tweets:

@queensageoftheunderworld: absolutely no one: men: I KNOW HOW TO WRITE STRONG FEMALE CHARACTERS!!!!!!! @queensageoftheunderworld: idc if it takes away my gold star gay card, spencer reid can fucking get it. @queensageoftheunderworld: guess who booked her next vacation to venice? poveglia island, here i come. @queensageoftheunderworld: pink hair, don’t care @queensageoftheunderworld: my apartment is haunted. check the thread below for all the details. makes dear daniel look like a kid’s bedtime story tbh